Setting Intentions and Self Care

Hello, people of the interwebs! I haven't posted in a while because of life things, but I really wanted to share some things I've been doing lately to look after my health as well as my mental well-being/stress levels. Self-care is essential because if we don't take care of ourselves on the most basic of levels first, we can't be free to help others or even be in the moment with our loved ones in the ways that we want.

One thing I have been trying to do nearly every single day for about two to three weeks now is set an intention for myself for the rest of the day. I try to do this in the morning, before I get out of bed. Basiclly this means, I set up in my mind what I want to accomplish on a certain day. It could be a to-do list of tasks, but more likely than not I try to set up a positive way of thinking as my intention.

Usually, I dread getting up and going to work. Whenever I feel that dread, I try to replace it with a better, more positive way of thinking. For instance, I may be thinking, "Man I really don't want to go to work. Customers are mean." I'll then try to replace that negative thought with one such as, "Yeah, this job isn't the best right now, but I've been busting my butt applying to other jobs. There are a lot of good things coming my way and I just need to suck this up in the meantime."

Most days, my intention is, "Today is going to be a good day, no matter what others do or say around you. You're in control of your happiness and you're in control of how today is going to go."

Another way I like to set an intention for myself is either through meditation or yoga. For instance, if I have the time in the morning to do a quick yoga routine, I'll quietly thank myself for giving the time to the practice, however little time that may be. If I don't have time for either, I have found doing a simple yoga pose for at least five minutes, focusing on my breathing, and setting an intention for my day, has been super helpful. That one pose is: legs up the wall. I know it sounds way easy and pretty lame, but don't knock it until you try it. If you even google it, you'll come up with tons of health benefits for this one pose. If you want to try it, here's a helpful video!

Socially, I have been trying to make time to see friends and family, though I still don't see these people as much as I would like to. Being an adult, having adult friends...it means everyone is busy and everyone has a different schedule. However, I have found that when I make time to see these people, the ones who matter most, it really boosts my mood and overall well-being. I can't really explain it, but I just feel better, mentally. I plan on working on this more and more.

Aromatherapy is something fairly new to me. My amazing boyfriend got me an aromatherapy essential oil diffuser for my birthday and I am in love with it. I currently only have two essential oils, because they're a bit pricey for good quality ones, but I seriously have found a positive difference in my mood. I even sleep better! I add a few (2-3) drops of the essential oil to my diffuser, plug it in and just let the scent fill the room. I have lemongrass oil, which helps with depression and anxiety, lifts mood, can be used as a pain reliever, and can even boost energy. Psst, it's what I have in my diffuser now as I write this.

I also have lavender oil, because it's amazing. It calms and soothes nerves, reduces stress/anxiety, and can aid in relaxation/sleep. To help me get a deeper, more restful night sleep, I have been putting the diffuser on with the lavender oil inside while I play on my phone before bed. I know, I know. I should be meditating or contemplating my life goals or some shizz, but I really just want to watch Youtube before bed. Sue me. Anyway, I'd say within 20-30minutes I am asleep. Which is amazing considering it usually takes me about an hour to an hour and half to fall asleep normally. I sleep more soundly and feel a lot less tired throughout the day because I'm getting a fuller night's sleep. If you're interested in getting your own diffuser, here's where my boyfriend bought mine from: Aromatherapy Diffuser

Also, side note: be super careful with what you put into the diffuser. Don't, for the love of your lungs, DO NOT put potpourri oil into it. Only pure essential oils.

Getting organized is another thing I've been doing to help myself get motivated and be a more productive person. This is partly due to the fact that my sister MADE me a dang planner for a birthday gift and I'm in love with it. Anyway, just planning out my week: what I have to do, what bills are due, when am I working and off, when can I apply to jobs, when I should do this or that...it's really helped to make my days more productive. In fact, yesterday was one of the most productive job-applying-laundry-doing-working-out-etc, day I've had in a long time. You can get nice planners for a reasonable price. Make planning things fun by using colored pens and highlighters and yes, many many stickers.
                                     

Finally, I have been trying to make time to read more. When I actually sit down with a good book and a possibly good cup of tea, I thoroughly enjoy it. I think my brain just gets so tired from all the other things I have going on sometimes that the last thing it wants to do is read a book. However, I've been making an effort to read more, despite feeling tired or wanting to play on my phone. Right now I'm reading Tina Fey's Bossy Pants and it's hysterical.

Anyway, this post was a bit of a ramble, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway. I hope this helped some of you out there who struggle to keep up with a self-care plan. You're not alone.

Don't forget to breathe.
--Dana

Yoga

I wanted to write a blog about yoga...but I'm not an expert "Yogi," or whatever you want to call it. I've been doing yoga for about two years now and, to be honest, I don't do it every single day. There's times where I'm too tired or just don't have the time to fully commit to a yoga practice. However, as of recently, I've fallen back in love with yoga.

Mind-Body-Connection

I'm not the most flexible, most athletic, or most fit person...but yoga really helps me feel better; body and mind. For me, yoga isn't about getting into the "perfect" pose you may see on a magazine cover or something. It means exploring and finding what feels the best for your own body, where it is, in

whatever moment you're in. Since I've started yoga, I have almost no back pain. In fact, back pain was the reason I decided to try out yoga in the first place. I've even started to notice small differences in my knee pain as well. It's amazing!

Yoga is NOT, by any means, an "easy" work out. It so isn't. I think the longest yoga work out I've done has been about 45 minutes, and that's with breaks in between hard poses. Yoga reminds me to be gentle with myself and the thoughts I have about myself. For example, I may think, "God, Dana. You can't even get into this pose. What's wrong with you?!" But then, I'll gently remind myself that I get better every time I step onto my yoga mat. There's nothing wrong with not being able to have the "perfect" tree pose (or any other pose...tree is just particularly difficult for me).

Once I've reminded myself of this, I can carry on this same notion of 'being gentle with myself,' throughout the rest of my day. For instance, if I'm in a social situation and am embarrassed just by my own awkward-self, I try to remind myself that I'm perfectly fine the way I am, awkwardness and all.

In fact, my boyfriend even says that's kind of why he loves me.
Now everybody at once: 1, 2, 3..."Awwwwwwwwwwh."

Spirituality/Mindfulness

I'm not religious, by any means. It's not to say that having a religion/faith/organization/etc. isn't a good thing-- I believe it can be for some people.  Although I don't have a set, organized religion that I follow, I do believe in spirituality. Yoga helps me to connect to that spiritual-side, especially in those quiet or resting moments where I can really sink into a pose or focus on my breath. 

Sometimes it can be something as simple as placing my hands together at my heart, closing my eyes, and breathing deeply. Sometimes when I do this, I feel better connected and grounded to this crazy thing we call life. I feel calmer, more motivated, and even happier. I feel like I'm right where I'm supposed to be when I finish a yoga practice; that I'm better equipped to live life in the moment. 

Yoga also reminds me to be mindful. The entire practice seems to be focused around being aware of the ground beneath your feet (and at times, hands), feeling the blood pump through your heart, feeling your breath move through you and help guide your practice. All of these things are encouraging in order to be more mindful, both in yoga practice and outside of it. 

For example, even if I come into contact with a rude person in my day, I remind myself that there has to be a reason that person is that way. It probably isn't anything I've done and nothing I can control, but he or she is carrying an invisible load on their back that no one else can see. Of course I get annoyed at rude people, I'm only human. However, I try to remind myself to be mindful of what that person may be going through. It helps with how I choose to react to that person.

Mood

Yoga sometimes can make a bad day turn into a good one. Or at the very least, it can help make a bad day not suck quite as much. My mood can sometimes dramatically improve when I do yoga. I like to

do yoga first thing in the morning, not a heavy or particularly long session, but yoga nonetheless. It helps wake me up and get my body and mind moving, ready to start the day. It can even do the opposite of this, help me to relax so I can get to sleep. I always have loved doing a relaxation/unwinding/ etc. yoga practice before bed, especially if I'm stressed out or anxious. Not only am I better able to fall asleep, but the sleep is deeper and more restful.

Speaking about anxiety, yoga is amazingggg for anxiety. As I said before, it helps to connect me to my breath and push away any negative thoughts, especially those that are aimed at myself. I find my anxiety likes to do that a lot, give my brain thoughts that deal with: shame, guilt, belittling, doubt, etc...and those thoughts are all aimed at my abilities to do certain tasks in life. I know none of them are true, but sometimes it's hard to remember that when the anxiety-monster is in full swing. Yoga definitely helps my brain calm down and I don't feel as panicked when I'm able to breathe, I mean really breathe. 

Goals For Myself

Again, I'm not a professional "yogi" or "yoga-master." In fact, some of the things yoga can express at times, like sticking out your tongue and breathing like a lion (it's a real thing, google it), is just too weird for me. But for the most part, I absolutely love what yoga has done for my life.  One day, I'd love to be able to do really cool yoga poses like a wheel barrel pose or even some inversion poses.

I'm just not there yet, and that's okay. Hell, I'd be happy if I could get my feet all the way to the mat when I practice downward facing dog. My main goal for yoga is to just keep at it. To not forget how good it makes me feel when I'm doing it and when I'm finished.

Here are some yoga videos I love:

Yoga with Adriene: Morning Sequence

Yoga with Adriene: Sun Salutation Practice

Yoga with Adriene: Stress Relief

Tara Stiles: Yoga Weight Loss and Balance Workout

Tara Stiles: Relaxing Bedtime Yoga

There's a lot more, but Youtube is an amazing resource for anyone interested in yoga. Just type whatever yoga routine you want, chances are, there's a video for it!

Don't forget to breathe.

--Dana