Archive for energy
Self-Care Can Sneak Its Way Into Your Daily Routine
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Self-care can sneak its way into your daily routine even when you’re so exhausted you hardly have enough energy to crawl out of bed.
But, if you don’t make space daily for self-care you end up often feeling irritable, anxious, depressed or bored. And all of that negative energy further depletes you and pushes self-care even farther into the background.
According to Dr. Christiane Northrup, a women’s health expert, the key to self-care is knowing in your heart that the best way you can care for others is by caring for yourself. It’s not selfish or to take care of yourself first. By doing so, you are assured that you have enough energy to take care of the other people in your life.
Here are some easy ways you can let self care sneak its way into your daily routine:
- Avoid unnecessary distractions – “fillers” – i.e., TV, Internet, texts and the constant demand to be in touch with everything and everyone, consume our time. All of this connection takes precious time away from the most important connection of all – the connection with self. Reduce the amount of negative energy coming at you from the media, and social connections.
- Start a Morning Ritual – Wake up earlier than usual and squeeze in an extra half- hour to pray, meditate, read motivational quotes or sit quietly breathing deeply. This is your time to focus on yourself before starting your day.
- Protect Your Boundaries – Boundaries are the invisible lines you place around you to protect your time, energy and resources. Your boundaries establish how you expect to be treated and what’s acceptable and what’s not. Guard your boundaries with care because strong boundaries make it easier to say “no” to requests and demands that eat away at your time, energy, confidence and self-worth.
- Treat yourself kindly – Taking time to wind down, reflect and feel in control of your life is likely to create better feelings about yourself. And the benefits extend to your family, friends, and co-workers. Treating yourself well is a powerful way to feel calmer, loving, generous, patient and relaxed.
- Fine-tune your schedule so that you leave space for some “me time”. When you are planning your daily activities, put YOU as a priority so that you have a visual reminder to take some time for yourself, even if it’s only 15 minutes to sit with your eyes closed.
Adding self-care to your daily routine shows that you place value on yourself and love yourself enough to take the very best care of yourself.
What’s your self-care routine?
Gladys Anderson - Life Coach, Therapist, Author
Gladys Anderson, founder of Coach for YOUR Dreams, is a certified life coach, licensed marriage and family therapist, writer and speaker. Gladys combines years of experience, training and a genuine commitment to helping nurses, teachers, therapists and other care giving women to set limits so they have more time, and energy to devote to self-care.
Make time for self care
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Making time for self-care is one of the first things we give up when life gets hectic and our energy level is low. With all the attention we give to taking care of others, juggling tasks, meeting deadlines and being responsible, it’s no wonder we often feel there’s no space in our busy schedules left for us.
And, as we take on more and more, we begin to feel like our lives are unmanageable and overwhelmed by all of the constant demands that take up our precious energy.
You may think you don’t have the stamina for self-care but when you start to take care of yourself first, you’ll be surprised at how much more energy you have to take care of everything else.
Here are three quick tips to create the space you need for self-care:
- Silence – Spend just a few minutes sitting quietly reading or with you feet up yield untold benefits in reducing stress. Quiet reflection is an ESSENTIAL part of your self-care.
- Schedule space for You – When you get overly tired, stressed, frustrated and anxious, that’s a signal that you need to relax and rejuvenate. Make sure you allow an interval in your busy schedule to replenish so you’ll be able to handle whatever crops up.
- Resiliency – Resiliency means you are able to make adjustments and bounce back quickly when difficulties arise. One of the biggest causes of stress is rigid expectations for yourself and others. When you’re resilient, you’re like the tree that bends in the winds but you’re less likely to break.
These simple changes can make a huge impact on your well-being and your inner state of being. You may also want to take a look at situations in your outer life to see if changes need to be made that can help support your inner work. For example, you may decide to relinquish certain responsibilities that no longer serve you or that you no longer find enjoyable especially if it’s an energy drainer and time stealer.
Make time for self care in your busy schedule and you will experience a greater feeling of contentment, satisfaction and harmony.
Until next time…
Gladys Anderson - Life Coach, Therapist, Author
Certified Life Coach, Family therapist and Group Coaching Specialist, Gladys M. Anderson, helps nurses, teachers, social workers, therapists and other care-giving women to set limits so they have more time, more joy and more energy for self-care. To get tips, start living out loud with enthusiasm, energy, passion, and self-confidence now, get your FREE copy of Building Strong Boundaries to Create More Breathing Space in Your Hectic Life
The Secret to Making Changes in Your Life
Posted by: | CommentsBill O’Hanlon, a well-known family therapist, says in his book, “Do One Thing Different” to focus on the solution rather than the problem.
I couldn’t agree more. When all of your attention is given to the problem at hand, you end up with very little energy to apply to a solution.
Long before I read The Secret, I learned from Bill O’Hanlon that changing my thoughts and what I paid attention to is a way for me to bring about a desired change.
In my practice, I come across people everyday who say they want change but are unwilling to challenge faulty beliefs about themselves, the situation or do something different.
It’s much more helpful to look at the things that are going well and exceptions rather than dwelling on the problem. For instance, what happens when you tell yourself you are limited in what you can achieve or you don’t have enough?
Do you find yourself saying the same phrases over and over? Phrases like, “I just don’t have enough energy to go to the gym, “I have to be the responsible one” or when will I have time for me”. Sound familiar?
Thinking the same thing over and over only gets you the same results. Lack and scarcity thinking attracts more lack and scarcity.
Here are some things you can practice doing that will start you thinking differently and getting different results:
- Create new feelings. When you find yourself feeling stuck, stressed and thinking the same empty phrases, try turning that thought into a solution. For example, “instead of bemoaning a lack of time, try saying “I have enough time to nurture myself” or “I go to the gym everyday at 6:30″. New actions create new feelings.
- Change a pattern. Whatever you’re doing something and you have a limiting thought – STOP – Take 5 minutes to relax. Surely, five minutes away from a chore is not going to cause World War III.
- Be grateful - Show gratitude for the things that are going well in your life. Start by writing down at least one thing you are grateful for each day and work your way up to listing five things you are grateful for and you will find your attitude different and less time spent dwelling on what’s not working for you.
I would love to hear your thoughts….just leave a comment below to join the conversation.
Gladys Anderson - Life Coach, Therapist, Author
About the Author:
Gladys M. Anderson is a certified group coach, personal life coach and a licensed marriage & family therapist. Gladys helps nurses, therapists, teachers and other caregivers establish boundaries, build balance and create breathing space in their busy lives.
5 Essential Boundary Making Tips
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How are you allowing others to set limits on your time and resources? Are you still taking on more and more tasks when your plate is already running over?
To keep from rocking the boat, what things are you doing that you would rather not? Taking your precious time to run an errand for someone just because they asked is not a way to show you have strong boundaries around YOUR time.
How jam packed is your schedule with the many things you “have to” do for your friends and family that don’t leave time for YOU? There are very few things you “have” to do. Replace “I have to” with “I choose to”…You always have the choice to determine how you spend your time, energy and resources.
What stories do you tell yourself supporting the hamster wheel life (running and running but getting nowhere fast)? Is your story one of scarcity, limits and procrastination?
If you are like most women, you can identify with at least some of the above statements. Most of us are adept at giving and doing for others but fall short when it comes to ourselves.
Use the following tips to start doing the things you love, setting healthy boundaries and creating the balance to enjoy your life:
- Relinquish the notion that you can do all, be all to everyone in your life. You are not superwoman. When you don’t set your own boundaries, you open the floodgates to more stress, anxiety and frustration by letting others set limits on your time and resources. Instead of keeping the peace, you’re really teaching other people that they have the power to determine how, when and what you spend your time doing.
- Revise the expectations you place on yourself – Look at where the expectations come from. Are they cultural, family defined or self imposed? For example, maybe you grew up believing that it’s better to give than receive and consequently, you give, give and give yet have difficulty receiving (i.e., compliments, gifts). Don’t let someone else’s expectations become your reality.
- Be spontaneous – You don’t have to know every detail before taking action. When you spend precious time trying to figure out every possible outcome to the decisions you make, you are actually agonizing over things you have no control of. Sometimes, you just have to make a decision and just go with it. If it turns out you could have made a better choice, revise or change your approach.
- If you are trying to find ways to avoid some people in your life or you are constantly complaining about them, then it may be time to revisit the virtues of that relationship. Sometimes people are in your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime. Re-evaluate your relationships with these people and set some firm boundaries about how and when you want them to participate in your life.
- Get off the back burner – Putting your needs and desires on the back burner while everyone else gets front and center, sends the message that your needs are not as important. Making yourself a priority lets other people know you value yourself, your time and your resources.
Gladys Anderson - Life Coach, Therapist, Author
About the Author:
Gladys M. Anderson is a certified group coach, personal life coach and a licensed marriage & family therapist. Gladys helps nurses, therapists, teachers and other caregivers establish boundaries, build balance and create breathing space into their busy lives.