By During the month of July, I learned a great deal about myself; about giving grace and my short-comings. I learned that it is much easier to give grace in situations where I am comfortable and agreeable; yet when situations are outside of my comfort zone, or I don’t agree with someone or something, it is much more difficult. I learned if you listen to your heart, you can find grace in that small pause before you say something you regret. Grace is loving, and grace is letting go, even when it’s difficult. Especially when it’s difficult. Grace isn’t one single interaction, but a journey; A journey that I will continue to stumble through, but will continue.
This month i’m switching gears and moving towards an overall attitude of wellness. Back in February, my focus was “self-care” and although this has similar concepts with this month, I think it’s time for a refresher. In February, it was mostly about recreating healthy habits, primarily to lose weight. This month, the focus is on physical and mental health, and their interactions. In Dialectical Behavior Therapy, much of this was referred to as “body mind” and the interactions between the mind-body connection. If we listen to our bodies, and take care of ourselves physically we are more able to deal with life stressors. This summer, I have been on vacay-mode with my body. I’ve been eating too much unhealthy food, drinking probably more than is necessary, and I can feel how these physical effects influence my mental health and stamina.
This month I’m back to healthy, clean eating. I’ll be meal prepping, and if that goes well I’ll share some tips. I am also part of a fitness accountability group; We check in daily, with our workouts and nutrition. What I love about the group, is that everyone is supportive, but if I drank a milkshake they’d call me on it, and tell me to get it together. I’m also going to focus on routines for a healthy lifestyle. I’m a firm believer in the importance of how you start your day, as I believe it mentally sets you up to make or break your day. This month i’ll be focusing on how the entire day can set you up for optimized living, for the current day and the next. Much of this really boils down to proper sleep hygiene; You can’t start your day bright and early, if you were tossing and turning all night. Although my sleep is mostly influenced by tiny people waking up and wanting to climb in our bed and sleep forehead to forehead, my husband struggles with sleep. I’ve been reading and researching sleep hygiene techniques that I can’t wait to share!
And of course, I’ll be doing some reading, listening to podcasts, and watching TedTalks, because that’s my jam and part of positively influencing the mind-body connection is stimulating your mind and not just your body. I’m looking forward to this month; I feel like I need a reboot, and my family does too.
