Wellbeing
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5 Morning Journal Prompts To Kickstart Your Day
I have often fantasised about having one of those super chilled and invigorating morning routines that are frequently recommended in the personal development and wellbeing space. You know, where you wake up naturally, basking in warm sunlight, switch on a guided meditation, slip into your stretchy pants and do some gentle exercise, have a healthy breakfast, read a few pages of a book, and then journal until your hearts content… While I have been able to incorporate some of these things into my morning routine, the reality is that during the week I am a mum of two, and the beginning of the day mainly involves making sure that both…
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What’s Your Summer Holiday Survival Strategy?
The end of the school year is in sight (or it may already be done and dusted for some of us!) and that six week stretch will soon be upon us. On the one hand there is the wonderful prospect of quality time with the family, heading off on holidays, exploring new places together, and not having to leap out of bed for the school run (whoop!) On the other hand though there is the dreaded juggling act between work and home life, figuring out how much holiday you can afford to take, who is going to look after the kids, and how you are going to keep them suitably…
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Looking for some inspiration? Create your own inspiration board!
This highly motivating and creative activity came to mind after a journal prompt got me thinking about all the things that have inspired me over the years. As I ran my eye over the various sources of inspiration that I had listed out I felt butterflies buzzing around in my stomach and a rush of determination to get on with my plans! I wanted to bottle that ‘get up and go’ feeling that had been evoked by my list, especially for days when some sort of setback occurs or for when I’m just feeling a bit stuck! Leaving the list in my journal, possibly never to be looked at again,…
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Let’s talk about the ‘F’ word…
Well, I don’t know about you but I’m thinking about FUN! How much of it do you have in your life currently? I know it can be hard to remember what fun is and how it even feels to have fun after the dire events of the last 12 months! However, it’s something that really struck me after looking back over 2020 and realising just how much I had thrown myself into working, studying, and stepping out of my comfort zone (which I can safely say also takes a lot of energy and emotion!) When it came to prioritising some carefree fun that would help to fill up my cup…
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Kickstart your yearly review and find your focus for the year ahead
After reluctantly emerging from my Christmas cocoon, and finding out that another lengthy period of lockdown loomed ahead, I made the decision to pause and take stock of the last 12 months. I wanted to extract any useful ‘life lessons’ that I could from what was such a challenging time (for many different reasons), to ponder ‘What next?’ and start the year with renewed focus and something positive to work towards as lockdown continued. If, like me, you love putting pen to paper and taking time out to journal (or just really want to give it a try) then I have packed this post full of questions that will prompt…
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What has Lego got to do with self-care?
Review of Build Yourself Happy by Abbie Headon (DK, 160 pages) When you think of mindful, relaxing activities that take you away from all the hustle and bustle of daily life, Lego building may not immediately come to mind… But then, as Abbie Headon points out right from the beginning of her book, Build Yourself Happy*, there is something joyful and liberating about allowing yourself to get lost in play even when you are all grown up! *Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops. It certainly provides a much needed break from your everyday routine and…
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The two parenting books that helped me through lockdown (and beyond!)
Review of Mindfulness for Mums by Izzy Judd and The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read by Philippa Perry I have never been much of a fan of parenting books, and after nearly 12 years of being a mum I have managed to steer clear of them, probably owing to some fear that they would confirm I was getting it all wrong and really was as clueless as I felt! Having come to an acceptance over the years that I don’t have to have it all sussed, and that seeking support is absolutely not a sign of weakness or inadequacy, I was curious about what I could learn from…
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Pause, Reflect, and Discover… What can you learn from lockdown?
As we take tentative steps towards opening up our businesses and communities, as well as making our own personal emergence from lockdown, there will undoubtedly be a mixed bag of feelings and a whole range of different experiences. Maybe you have actually relished the time to pause or perhaps there was no time to pause at all and you were busier than ever. You might have had to spend time recovering from the virus or have endured a long period of isolation to shield yourself and other family members from it. Maybe you have been going through immense heartache and have been grieving over the loss of loved ones, or…
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Surviving the Storm: Breakdown, recovery and learning to manage anxiety
I am taking a huge deep breath and sharing this deeply personal experience with you because when I was in the clutches of a mental health crisis I felt like I was alone in my struggles even though I had incredibly supportive family and friends around me. Once I was able to be honest with myself and started opening up to them, I noticed that they were able to tell me about their own experiences with mental health issues or how they had overcome other adverse situations. Listening to their stories gave me the courage and motivation to keep going. Crucially, I also felt some reassurance that it wasn’t ‘just…
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Nothing compares to you…
What to do when you feel like you don’t quite measure up to others I know I should really give myself a break, like many people in lockdown right now I’m in the midst of adjusting to a new way of life, figuring out this home learning business, and dealing with the uncertainty of not knowing what life will be like for us all afterwards. Yet, in spite of all the upheaval, and the fact that we are all just doing our best to get by right now, I’ve still found that whenever I’ve been scrolling through social media to see what the outside world is up to, I’ve been…
