How are you coping with current events? In The Sober Club we did a meditation and a tapping sequence to help us feel more grounded, and reduce anxiety. We focused on the impact of trauma, emotional wellbeing and how to reduce stress, and raise our vibration
It would be suprising right now if you weren’t at times feeling stressed, but also under threat, its a terrible emotion, also guilt that we can’t help as we would like to, and fear as to what might happen.
This sends us into fight flight or freeze mode, which is awful for our body for a sustained length of time.
There is a mind body connection
Psychologists call it the cybernetic loop, the mind affects the body, the body affects the mind, so we can adjust our body, even just our posture or our breath and it can calm our mind, just as we can tell ourselves we are ok and allow our body to know this.
Now is the time to boost your immunity and focus on selfcare, there has never been a better time to focus on our wellbeing, ensure that we stay in balance and as optimistic as possible. Where attention goes, energy flows…or something like that…and right now globally there is a lot of attention on crisis and calamity and fear. Sadly we can’t ‘magic’ that away and we all need to be responsible and recognise the gravity, BUT we also need to remain safe, well and connected.
Fear is contagious but so is hope and love so let’s all try and be part of the solution not the problem. We need to focus on looking after our own well being at this time so here’s some simple tips and suggestions. Replace any words that don’t resonate with your own!
This was originally written for a blog post at the beginning of lockdown 2020, who would have thought we would be needing it again!
Here’s the SELFCARE acronym
S stands for Sobriety, trust me there has never been a better time to be sober, I am SO grateful that I don’t have to panic about pubs closing or shops being emptied of alcohol. Remember, it lowers your immunity and increases anxiety levels. Don’t allow stress to send you back to old habits, if you aren’t already a member of The Sober Club do consider joining us, its an incredibly supportive community. www.thesoberclub.com S is also for Sleep – Get lots of it, and practice good ‘hygiene’ leave your devices out the room, have a magnesium salts bath, and use Lavender essential oil, a few drops in a burner, or sprinkled on the pillow
E stands for Exercise. Your gym, swimming pool and classes may be cancelled but there are some amazing online classes including Pilates, Yoga and Gym sessions, you can easily do home workouts and at the time of going to press we CAN still walk in nature! Bev Densham offers MIndfulness PIlates https://www.pilatestofeelgood.com/ Posture is also incredibly important, stand tall, especially when you feel anxious, it sends the right messages to the brain, seriously watch my TEDx talk where I mention the Power Pose!
L stand for love, self-love is so important, be careful of not reverting to old habits of listening to the inner critic, love for others is key too, and this is the time for a sense of community spirit Love in action, one amazing thing that can come out of all this!
F stands for Friendship, cultivate friendships online, and don’t forget we can send letters cards and drawings, it’s especially important to do that for elderly friends and relatives who may not be online. F also stands for Focus, focus on what you want for yourself over the next couple of months (within the limitations)
C stands for connection, connect with others, join our Sober club facebook group, and and also for Creativity, this is the time to learn a language, get baking, singing, painting, knitting, gardening ….all the ‘ING’s’ (NOT Drinking!)
A stands for Awe, that sense of wonder, we can still be encouraged, uplifted and inspired, the daffodils are blooming, and the sky is still blue right? It also stands for Appreciation, keep gratitude lists and appreciate what we do still have.
R stands for Resources, what keeps you going? What tops up your battery levels? For some it’s walking in nature, others an open fire, I love the sea, it may that you love to do art or reading, whatever it is keep doing it! Your resources are also all that you need for boosting your immunity, good nutrition is essential. Watch this space for more on immune boosting supplements.
E is for Energy, stay grounded, keep your energy flowing, A simple tip is to take off your shoes and stand or lie on the earth, it helps you to feel calm This is great time to connect with your own energy, meditation, visualise and see what is within.
Here are some more suggestions we talked about on our recent catch up
Limit your news intake as much as possible. Its about protecting your energy and emotional wellbeing. Also limit social media, doom scrolling won’t help
Be in the moment, a lot can be said for standing in a power pose, hand on heart, and breathe. Focus on someone or something you love, and of course if you can give them a hug that is great for releasing happy hormones.
Get out of your head and into your body, as Shaman Yacov Darling kahn says, put a track on you love and dance, or just shake it out, shaking is great, read section on trauma release, we can just wiggle everything!
Try some EFT tapping sequences. (In The Sober Club we have some EFT sessions in the member portal)
Breathing techniques can help too, Box breathing is where we breathe along the 4 sides of a box, in for 4, across for 4, down for 4, across for 4, Focus on breathing out stress and fear and breathing in love and peace.
Try a meditation audio or a Yoga Nidra, such as my Chakra balancing audio meditation, great for feeling peaceful.
Voice your fears and worries, giving voice to it helps, and we can raise our vibration as much as possible to be in our spiritual being not deep in fear. Journalling helps, stream of consciousness because if we have committed to writing our thoughts, without judgment, we have to get out your fears and worries – remember Louise Hay said
‘You can’t clean the house till you can see the dirt’, its better out than in!
Before we go to sleep, write down what we are grateful for, gratitudes and blessings, focus on what you can do, strengthening your own light will always help, sending love and light and obviously if you want to make donations, find honourable charities, personally I think money is needed more than items because its just a logistical nightmare getting clothes and supplies to other countries.