Your journey to health begins here.
It creeps up on us, especially around this time of year. Unwelcome irritability or grumpiness begins to rear its ugly head, unexplained fatigue begins to pull you down, or maybe the things you usually enjoy are not making you smile. Your normally positive relationships at work are suddenly strained and difficult. Sounds a bit like depression, right? But it could just be burnout. Stressors add up quickly and without time to recoup and reset, your brain and body begin to shut down to try to repair the damage from everyday difficulties. How to best beat burnout? When things are moving too fast or feeling too hard, try these 3 steps for a quick fix: solitude, saying no, and self care. First take a mindful moment alone. Just breathe and reconnect with your body to get out of your head and back into the moment. Next, remember you are allowed say no to requests at work or home to regain a little time for yourself. It’s much more healthy to say no to a request that will will overextend your energy than to say yes and end up double booked and frantic. Finally, try a little self care to restore. Maybe a hot bath with essential oils or a cup of tea with the door closed is all you need to reboot your day. Maybe an exercise class or a walk is your self-care solution. Perhaps reaching out for help is your best bet to unburden your cares and call in a little support. Whatever you need, take a moment to find out what that is, and treat yourself to some loving care to avoid burnout.
via Karyn Bender RPh CHHC
It’s the time of year where we take stock of our lives and look at what we aren’t happy with, then make New Year’s resolutions to change the things that we think are wrong with us. Usually by the end of January, we’ve given up on quitting smoking, going to the gym four times a week, sticking to our diets, or whatever else we think will make us happier, healthier, and more complete. For those of us who have a hard time sticking to our resolutions, maybe we should try something different. This year, make one resolution only; stop seeing yourself as someone who needs to be fixed. There is nothing wrong with making goals to improve yourself, but most of the things that we intend to change every New Year aren’t really the problem. The real issue is that we are extremely hard on ourselves. We embrace perfection to the point of being incapable of accepting ourselves just as we are. As a result, we don’t believe that we can be happy right here, right now, regardless of our circumstances. Make a commitment to love yourself and to cherish your beautiful, glorious imperfections. The kinder you are to yourself, the easier it will be to eventually let go of behaviors and habits that no longer serve you.
via Karyn Bender RPh CHHC
We are distracted creatures: attempting to search around ourselves for some sort of warped meaning. If we would only quiet our busy minds, we may realize that there is truth within us. Let us stop looking around us, and fix our eyes upward. There is so much to see. May we look inward, for there is much to learn. Instead of getting lost in the ways of the world, may we find refuge in the, small but sure, light within our souls: twinkling at the sight of ourselves, learning to trust, to believe, to give, and to reflect. To have true courage, and to respect our beautifully authentic self.
via Karyn Bender RPh CHHC