Do you imagine the run-up to Christmas as being a time to enjoy winter walks, craft fairs in search of artisan gifts and meeting up with friends? So often the reality is quite different, and we start to feel overwhelmed whilst we try to make everything ‘perfect’ and keep everyone happy, which has a knock-on effect on our self-care and we arrive at Christmas tired and exhausted unable to enjoy the festive cheer.
Prioritising self-care might not come naturally but know that you have the power to change this. Building in small but significant self-care activities and mindset shifts can help create moments of calm leaving us feeling more positive.
Here are some ideas to create a self-care plan that you can fit into your schedule, even at the busiest time of the year.
- Mindset – Become your own Inner Coach, so often our inner dialogue is not the kindest and it can get quite noisy in there. Remember that not every thought you have is true. Start asking yourself “Do I need to be focusing on this right now?” or “Is this really helpful?” This helps you get a perspective on your current reality. Ask yourself what would my best friend say to me now and always respond with kindness.
- Helping the overwhelm – Brain dump – grab a piece of paper and write down everything that is in your head so that you can then prioritise what really needs to be done that day and what can wait or planned into other days.
- The Power of 3 – On a daily basis create a list of 3 things that absolutely must get done and as you cross them off allow yourself to feel that satisfaction; you could move them across to a Ta-Dah list and give yourself a cheer or do a little dance to celebrate. If you manage to do any more of your list that is a bonus. This helps to boost your sense of well-being and leaves you feeling accomplished at the end of the day.
- Journal – journalling allows you to vent those unvoiced feelings and clear the head. If you are journalling in the morning you could write about how you feel about the day ahead, what tasks you have to complete, how you are going to do that. If you are journalling in the evening you could write about what went well, listing things you are grateful for or even what self-care you are going to build into your schedule the next day.
- Remember to take ‘time out’ – ensure you have scheduled some ‘time out’ just for you during the day. Often we feel guilty taking time out when there is so much to do but we all deserve a break. This can be anything from 10 minutes to a whole afternoon! Maybe journal some ideas of what self-care looks like for you as it is different for everyone – it may be sitting down and enjoying a cup of tea, curling up with a book, taking a bath, walking in nature, having a nap – the list is endless.
- Mindfulness tip – whilst you wait for the kettle to boil why not do some breathing or some stretching to calm and ease out your body. Try breathing in for a count of 2 and out for a count of 2, then in for 3 and out for 3 increasing to a count of 6.
- Keep your immune system boosted – when we are busy and stressed our immune system is lowered so ensure you eat plenty of vegetables especially ones which are high in Vitamin C like red bell pepper, garlic, ginger and spinach, increase your intake of fruit. Drink plenty of water to help flush out the toxins and to keep you hydrated. Take supplements of Vitamin C and D.
- Meditation & Tapping – I know you are probably already shouting at me “I don’t have time for this – are your crazy?” You only need to do 10 mins and believe me by taking that time to meditate and/or tap it will help change your state of being and you can get going again from a much calmer, positive and more grounded place because you are not supposed to spend your days feeling stressed and overwhelmed, living from fight or flight and pumping stress hormones through your body (don’t even get me started on the long term health ramifications of that, a whole other blog is needed for that!).
Remember you are the only one who can take back your power, friends and family can help but only you can implement daily routines and set boundaries to help your mental health and well-being.
Invest in your own well-being so you end the year and move into 2023 feeling rested and renewed rather than frazzled and exhausted. You can purchase my Finding Calm in the Christmas Chaos meditations and tapping script which will only take 20 minutes in total, or you can do them individually, 5 – 10 minutes for £10, head on over and get instant access https://samanthahardwick.com/calm-christmas-chaos/
If you need further help transforming your inner critic into your inner coach I invite you to book a free 30-minute discovery call to see how I am able to support you https://calendly.com/samanthahardwickcoach/30mindiscovery