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I don't want to be stressed

Tag Archives: relaxation

Chilling on the couch at 5pm

11 Thursday Feb 2016

Posted by Andi in Advice, Mindfulness, Quiet and slow

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Tags

feeling sick, guilt, looking after yourself, quiet time, relaxation, slow down, time out

In a surprising turn of events, after nursing two sick kids, I ended up getting sick too.
Nothing hectic, it was just a cold but  nevertheless, I was sick and miserable (of course).
I say surprising rather sarcastically because it wasn’t surprising at all – in fact, I was waiting for it to happen.  I know my body well enough to know that if I don’t get enough sleep and I work too hard and care too much, my immune system is going to take a breather and I will get sick.

And you know what? I didn’t mind!
Firstly I wasn’t sick enough to be bed ridden by any means.  I kept on working as usual and driving my kids to and from school.
Secondly, and most importantly, it gave me a legitimate reason to just lie down on the couch in the middle of the afternoon.
Usually the afternoons are meant for me to do administration and reports and now I just didn’t have the energy to do that work (or much housework).  And it was pretty wonderful.
If I wasn’t sick, I would have really felt guilty about doing nothing at 5pm but now I had an excuse.
And I discovered that there are a lot of interesting things to watch on TV at 5pm.  But more than that, I gave my body time to relax.

What is it that makes us feel that we need to be busy all of the time?
I definitely don’t usually have the time to spend on the couch but I really cherished the time that I could.  I also thought about being kinder to myself and about the importance of taking some time out just to relax.
I tend to “relax” by doing things and I try to convince myself that if it is not actual “work”, then it is leisure.
But it is not.

True relaxation is about not needing to be doing anything productive.  It is about being able to not do anything without feeling guilty and it is about not feeling like you are useless or worthless if you can’t account for every minute that you spent in your day.
By being still and quiet, you allow yourself to really connect with yourself or with people who matter to you.
Put that phone down!
Put that broom away!
Step away from that computer!

You honestly deserve time out and down time.
Never, ever feel guilty about looking after your body, mind and soul.
Even if you can only manage a few minutes a day, just sit quietly and breathe.
Do gentle stretches. Watch the world go by and appreciate your surroundings.
Sip your tea (out of a real teacup rather than a travel mug) instead of gulping it on the run.
Your body will thank you for it!

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Happy Woman’s Day

08 Thursday Aug 2013

Posted by Andi in Advice, Projects, Relaxation, Wonderful Women

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

bath, bath salts, chamomile, crafts, lavender, relaxation, Superwoman, woman's day, Woman's quotes

For those of you who don’t live in South Africa, let me just tell you that tomorrow is a holiday – it is Woman’s Day.

And no, we don’t have a Man’s day – that’s just the way that things work around here.  I certainly don’t aim to exclude men in this post but I am going to focus on woman.

Somebody sent this quote to me yesterday: “SuperWomen are a new breed of women – who work, workout, manage a family and a household, socialise, empathise, text, tweet, follow trends, do follow up studies, cook, clean, and keep her manicured finger on the pulse of current affairs, all in a day’s work…”

It is a lovely theory and I’m sure that we all aspire to be Superwoman but it only leads to increased stress and pressure and ultimately burnout.  And the last time I looked, there was not a cape hanging up in my cupboard.

As women (and yes of course as men) we should just be striving to be the best that we can be.  We can’t all do everything all the time.  There are going to be times that you can’t work, definitely can’t work out, want to run away from your family….  And that is OK too because you need to be kind to yourself.  You need to make time to nurture yourself because no matter who you are or how much you do, you are worth looking after.

So, I’ll give you this quote which I prefer:  “Women are angels, and when someone breaks your wings…We simply continue to fly…On a broomstick. We are flexible like that”

In honour of Woman’s Day and all of you great, amazing people who are so kind to read my blog – here’s a simple activity to do that you can really enjoy using and treat yourself with (note: yourself! – when you’ve mastered the recipe, then feel free to give it out to family and friends)

Soothing Lavender and Chamomile bath salts:

Fill a container of your choice with coarse salt (I use salt from a soap supply shop but you can use standard coarse salt from the grocery store)

blog pics 006

Add one tablespoon of dried lavender and one tablespoon of dried chamomile flowers (you can get these from a health store or whole food store – but feel free to cut open a bag of herbal tea and throw that into the mix).

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Add a few drops of lavender essential oil

Put the lid on and shake really, really well (do a little jiggy dance while you do this – it helps)

blog pics 005

Pour a handful of your salt into a hot bath – lie back, relax….. Aahhhh

(and of course, feel free to mix any herbs and oils that appeal to you)

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