It’s a New Year which means we should make things new within our lives as well. This first Tuesday of 2015 I want to focus on how to keep yourself first.
With that, here at 10 ways to give back to yourself throughout this year with whatever you encounter. Remember, if you don’t take care and give to yourself, how can you ever fully give your best to others?
1. Make meditation a priority! Creating a daily routine that includes time to meditate, self-reflect and pray is one of the best things you can offer yourself. Whether its four minutes and twenty-five, there is always time in the day to dedicate to yourself for meditation, prayer and self-reflection. When you do this, it creates clarity. It also gives you a deeper meaning to life and you appreciate the moments of what are to come much more. Try it… I promise you won’t regret it!
Here is a great example of 4 minute meditation from one of my favorite people Rebekah Borucki BexLife:
2. Be childlike and play a little! Don’t take things to seriously. Be childlike and get outside to enjoy some play time. Ride a bike, roll down a hill, laugh until you cry, hell, laugh at yourself OUT LOUD… whatever it is, enjoy it as if there are no worries in the world just as children do. Some of my favorite moments are when I’m teaching my nieces and nephews how to turn cartwheels in the yard or playing games with them. It relieves so much stress.
3. Celebrate your success. Big promotion or small obstacle you’ve overcome like the fear of escalators… no matter the size of the success and no matter if others don’t see it as a success as you do, take the moment to celebrate it and tell yourself job well done. Remember, you do not need permission from anyone else to celebrate yourself!
4. Turn off from social media for a few hours a day. If you are bold enough make it a full day or even a week. Give yourself a break from the minutia of others lives they create on social media. Take a break from the drama. 🙂 I love the article about 7-day Smart Phone Detox from Popsugar! I think we as people forget we didn’t always have this accessibility… don’t become a slave to it.
5. Don’t take your phone to bed! This goes in hand with the previous way to give back to yourself. Sleep is a necessity… whatever the email, text and notifications from Facebook are can wait until the next day. ENJOY your bed time with a good book, the bible, soothing sounds of nothing and above all SLEEP!
6. Express yourself creatively. Dance, sing, perform at open mic, take a pottery making class, write or even paint an abstract canvas! Just do something at least once a week that allows you to tap into your creative side. There is no way you can stay stressed out if doing this. Art can be very therapeutic.
7. Detox when necessary! I believe in completing a health detox after holidays, sometimes once per season or whenever I feel my body needs it. Releasing toxins from your body is a BIG THANK YOU from your soul to your ears. You release stress and inherit peace. Detox is not just for removing addictions…detox is to purify your body from all impurities, stress, promote elimination from intestines and so much more. Check out more HERE.
8. Get a full body massage at least once a month. Depending on your daily life stress you may want to do more. While living in New York I would get my Thai Body Massage every other week and it relieved so much stress and revitalized me. (NOTE… you don’t have to break the bank for this service to yourself. Look into local massage schools where you can go and offer a donation to the students. They are learning but still great!)
9. Share why you are grateful each day! Create a grateful journal and write those things you are grateful for.
10. Pay attention to Posture. Simple yet most impactful way to give back to yourself. Trust, you will notice the difference in the way you feel, react, smile and deal with less stress with the straightening of your back.
These are my top ten but I would love to hear some of the those things you will do to give back to yourself.
~Kisha
kishaslifelessons.wordpress.com 