A quick check-in. How are you feeling today?
I feel like I am sitting somewhere between a Sci-Fi movie and a social experiment. Allowing my mind to even attempt to navigate the surreal nature of it all is seemingly, in and of itself, unfair.
Fully embracing “20:plenty” attitude, the year began with a sense of enormous promise, change and new beginnings.
Who would have thought that in an apparent instant, an invisible force, called Covid-19 would step in and become the universal equalizer?
We move through our daily lives mostly unaware of the nuances of change, until suddenly they are upon us. We only get to reflect and understand retrospectively, because of the general repetition of our daily routines.
It is powerful reminder that when change does happen, it can happen in an instant.
As a “glass half full” kind of girl, I choose to put these fractured thoughts aside and explore what this space and time can do for me.
Time is such a precious commodity. We can decide to see everything crashing around us, or we can seek out the opportunity.
Let’s call this an invitation. An opportunity to reassess, do some personal “housekeeping”, to reconnect with our family and our personal selves in a more creative, deeper and heartfelt way than our lives have ever previously allowed for.
What we think is a priority in our life, yet in reality place last? Five days catching our tails, rushing through our routines like slaves to our “system”. Weekends become the catch up for play, family-time and quietening down the mind in order to hear what the rest of “me” has been trying to reach out to say. And then come Monday, back to the treadmill.
We are all reading so much news out there that I doubt there are many who are not in complete and total media overload. Constantly focusing on media keeps the mind locked into drama and fear, but more importantly closes the space within for contemplation, discernment and reflection.
Our world has never experienced anything like this before. It’s extraordinary to think that we have all been given permission to slow down, to really take stock of our health, to become more present and structured within our home environment and to connect more deeply with ourselves, our children and loved ones.
Feelings of “being out of control”, as I have heard from many, is the lifting of an illusionary veil showing us that we were in fact never in control.
The only thing you get to control and choose is how you react to what is in front of you. The ‘crisis’ is forcing us to slow down, which presents a gift of having a little more time to contemplate our response.
Everyone’s routine has been thrown out of sync. This can either be a nightmare or an opportunity to make some changes to what has not been serving you.
I don’t imagine that life after this time will ever be the same. The “new beginning” is unfolding. How that will look and feel in the world is still to be revealed. That said, 21-days is the optimum time for anyone to create a personal “beginning of the new”.
HOW TO GET STARTED
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Don’t overwhelm yourself with too many things. Consider yourself holistically, as body, heart, mind and spirit.
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Take the time to write up a schedule. Include a list of your key goals. The reality is that unless you write it down and actually create some schedule and structure for yourself, you are unlikely to follow your intentions, as good as they may be.
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How you start your day informs how your day flows.
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Practice daily gratitude. Focus on what is positive in your life.
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Reinforce positive thinking, as a constant practice.
SOME QUESTIONS TO START YOUR CHECK-IN?
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What does my health look like?
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What would I like to improve or focus on over this period?
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How can I make the time, and what do I need to do to keep the momentum, commitment and consistency?
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What spaces can I allocate in my home to each specific activity?
“Habits are your life” -Dr BJ Fog
Personal health should be a non-negotiable. So what have you not been doing in your life that this time is highlighting and activating for you?
MENTAL & EMOTIONAL
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Daily meditation (go online, select a meditation and stay with this meditation for a few days rather than moving from one to another)
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Take 5 minutes each day to sit in an allocated space and just do 5 minutes of conscious breathing. This is focusing your awareness simply on your breath. Any thoughts to pass through without judgment and return to your breath.
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One simple breath technique I often use and takes less than 4 minutes: https://www.drweil.com/health-wellness/body-mind-spirit/stress-anxiety/breathing-three-exercises/
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Fear is a low frequency. It affects our breath, our mind, our emotional stability, our thoughts and our overall health. There are very few people who do not have phones. Use this time to separate yourself from the “addiction” of social media. Allocate rules when you look at your phone and take it out of sight to support your commitment. Even as I sit here and write, I have noticed that not having my phone next to me, is keeping me focused and undistracted.
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Become the keen observer of your thoughts. Take this time to really stalk your negative thinking and in the moment of hearing any negative thoughts or words can instantly be transmuted by changing your language and correcting towards a more positive perspective. Ultimately it is all about perspective and your perceived reality. Change your attitude and your thinking, and you change your reality.
PHYSICAL
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What activities are you doing before you go to sleep, and are you getting enough sleep?
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Can you explore switching off your phone at a certain time at night and doing conscious breath work for as little as 5 minutes before you go to sleep, or an evening meditation?
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Start the morning by drinking two glasses of water before anything else. Drink 2lt of water per day.
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Try to eat your last meal of the day earlier so your food digests before sleeping.
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Can you create a daily exercise routine beyond your cleaning routine (which is also great exercise), but not focused on your body, rather the cleaning? If you have never done anything before, put on some music and dance for 30 minutes every day. Play and move your body.
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Eat more whole, unrefined and unprocessed foods. Focus on fruit and vegetables, as a reminder that “hunger is the body’s call for nutrients”. Nutrient dense food is food that comes most directly from the Earth.
HEART AND SPIRIT
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Stop self judgment and judgment of others.
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Look at how you can be of service, without compromising your health and wellbeing.
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Prayer, meditation, stillness is different ways of connecting with the essence of life.
