October is Emotional Wellness Month! I think this fits in perfectly with October, the next two months will be jam-packed full of activities and you will look up and it will be NYE. The stress and deadlines will be on, so let’s take a breath and talk about treating ourselves with grace.
The National Institute of Health (NIH) defines emotional wellness as the ability to successfully handle life’s stresses and adapt to change and difficult times. Read more here.
I like to think of emotional wellness as self-care’s twin. If you are taking care of YOU managing your stress and well-being will go hand in hand. Right? I try to do self-care every day, but on those weeks when I feel like all 7 days are a juggling act,
I take a full hour at the end of the week to really dive in and give back to me. I stretch daily, sometimes when I am still in bed. It’s part of my morning ritual (if you do not have a morning routine, I strongly advise adopting one) and I feel energized and ready to tackle the day when I do my ritual. On the days I hit snooze a dozen times and roll out of bed with ten minutes to spare it gets skipped. The afternoon arrives and I am in the worst of moods. My ability to handle stress is at 0 and I just want a nap.
On the days when I notice these feelings, I take a moment to meditate and re-align myself. This moment of being still and giving my body what it needs gives me clarity for the rest of the day. Stress washes over me like water on a duck’s back and I am invigorated to tackle the day.
Emotional Wellness looks different for everyone. Hey! We are not clones. Find what works for you. Here are a few tidbits to consider when practicing Emotional Wellness.
- Protect your peace.
- Listen to your body.
- Carve time out for you.
Are people stressing you out? Do you have a way to control the situation? How can you maintain a sense of calm when you are unable to protect your peace? Five years ago I hated my job. I dreaded going to work and I was in management! You would think I would be ecstatic to manage my team, work with leadership and get through my day.
Nope. The management team had dissolved into toxicity and I felt like no matter what I did it wasn’t enough. It didn’t matter that I was working 50 hours a week. It didn’t matter that I came in on Saturdays to help the team. It also did not matter that I was overstressed and using coping skills that were not healthy. My emotional wellness was trash. I felt invisible, I did not feel seen and it was not a good time. Insert a coworker who saw me, my stress, and my coping. She said, “take the stairs with me, you will feel better.” I laughed but went on break with her and ….shocker exercising on a 15-minute break instead of chain-smoking cigarettes did make me feel better.
I felt like the only control I had was to cope by chain-smoking cigarettes on breaks, but that was not the right coping skill! My coworker showed me a better way to control how I felt and that started me on my fitness journey. I lost 60 pounds, actually kept the weight off for the first time in my life 🎊, and eventually created this blog. YOU have the power to control your situation. Even if it’s saying no.
“Can you stay an hour late to work on this project?”
“No, I cannot but I will come in 30 minutes early tomorrow to get started on it.”
“No, but I will keep you informed on how much is left on the project by the end of the day.”
OR
“No.” Let your no speak for itself. Protect your peace.
Listen to your body. I will say that again. LISTEN. TO. YOUR. BODY. The human body is pretty neat, it will tell us when we are tired. Whether we listen or ignore it is a different story 😂. If you feel like your eyes are melting after scrolling IG endlessly for 45 min, put the screen down, close your eyes and just be.
IG will still be there. I promise. Those cute cat videos on TikTok will still be waiting for you. That text your bae sent will still be waiting for your reply when you get back. The more I learn about myself, emotional wellness, and self-care, the more it sinks in… it can wait. Whatever it is. The world will not burn if I take a moment to myself and when I come back to those tasks I can tackle them better. The people I love understand and have even adopted some emotional wellness themselves. Share yours with me!
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What great ideas and insight!
Thanks Renata!💕