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Writer's pictureSusan NeCastro

Practice Self Care

Everything has finally caught up with me. I haven't been sleeping well, haven't been eating as well as a I should and have been worrying A LOT about many things. Sound familiar......Self Care has gone out the window. In fact, the term seems relatively foreign to me at this point in time.

[Photo credit: Wix stock photos]

The serenity of the mountains and the beauty of nature have always been able to get me back on track and when I am in need of a dose of this stress relieving medicine it is luckily only 2 hours away. But travel restrictions have put them out of my reach. (Hint: Beech Mountain, NC)


I haven't been able to shake the stress like I normally can and my attempts to stay informed 24/7 on the pandemic have backfired. Taking care of everyone else, making sure we are stocked with groceries, staying positive for the family, finding activities to stay connected , monitoring my kids to make sure they are doing their part to stay safe and keep others safe and just the general stress of uncertainty has taken its toll.


I typically am proud to say I usually feel younger than my chronological age but this morning when I got out of bed I felt like the calendar had flipped at least 10 years. Time to re-calibrate and get back to healthier eating, healthier thinking and turning down the news and noise 24/7 while still staying informed. In other words my body was telling me it is time to just take a step back to try to put some normalcy back in my day and re-focus on meditating to bolster my mental toughness and stop feeling like I need to shoulder the weight of the world. We all need to do our part but that is all we can do. As a mom', parents, adults and leaders we need to set the example to be responsible but give ourselves permission to take care of our well being.


Since I can't get to the mountains, here are a few things I have been doing and some I plan to do to practice self care that can serve as very therapeutic alternatives. You may have some other ways you are coping and practicing self care and would love to hear what you are doing to get you through.


1) Exercise- Get out and walk if you can. This is pretty much a no brainer but I have not done as much as I should . We all need to get out of our house to prevent the "stir crazies' and not just because we are heading to the drug store or to do grocery shopping


2) De-clutter- Got a closet or garage that needs some work? Nothing makes me happier than to organize the disorganized but I may be just a tad OCD :)) Organizing and decluttering can be a great stress reliever......Just sayin'


3) Wash your Cars- Actually do it yourself. This is not something I do on a regular basis but you can really just "zone out". Don't hit the local car wash even if its still open . If you have little kids, get them to help and if big kids get them to help too :) The pollen is outrageous right now or at least it is in my neck of the woods. Yuck....


4) Gardening- I recently planted an Azalea garden in my back yard with some back yard spotlights and I am tremendously pleased with myself. I will say it was a little physically taxing but mentally it is a respite. I am going to try doing more of this as it is very rejuvenating and the final result is beautiful to look at day and night.


5) Sit Still-Give yourself permission to do nothing for 20 or 30 minutes. No Netflix, Social Media, No phone, No books, No cleaning. Just close your eyes and get in touch with your inner voice and what's it's telling you. And here is the hard part.....LISTEN










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