What do you have to say no to, to say yes to yourself?

We all experience stress, feel overwhelmed and take on more responsibilities than we can truly handle and still feel balanced,

When our children "meltdown," we take a step back and pause - We ask ourselves, are they tired? Are they overstimulated with too many things or people around? Are they hungry? Do they need a nap? We actively seek ways to calm or soothe them.

I ask, "Where is our "pause" button"?

Are you able to recognize your signs of stress and overwhelm? 

It may be time to ponder why you can't simply "be." We have become a society where we race from thing to thing and believe it's a badge of honor to say how "busy" we are. We must justify why we can't sit still, or perhaps we have forgotten how. Are we justifying it to ourselves or those around us? I know I am guilty of struggling to "be," and something I am intentionally working on; it's a work in progress! 

Every choice we make has a ripple effect on our mental, emotional, and physical health. 

Here are 7 ways to slow down and simplify. Just thinking about it makes me feel better already!

1. Relationships and friends: Be intentional with friends and who you choose to spend your time. Growing up, I didn't have a lot of friends, and my mom always said, "focus on the quality and not the quantity." Today, those words remain even truer for multiple reasons. I have learned with time that I am an introvert and am far more comfortable around small groups with close friends. Take time to learn how to nourish your friendships so that they nourish you.

   
   

2. Get some sleep! If you have children, you know how important sleep is to them and how it affects everything; as adults, we are no different. A solid sleep routine is priceless to our emotional, mental, and physical health.

   
   

3. Turn down the noise on social: Today, we are ALL on information overload. Take time to process what you are seeing/reading and notice how it makes you feel, ask yourself if that experience is serving you and then give yourself some space away from all the noise.

   
   

4. Turn off the news:If you are a news "junky," get in and get out, get what you need and move on. If specific experiences continually create additional stress, activate you, and impact your emotional and mental health, shift your actions away from the news and see what you can do that’s different. It’s important to ask, "is this experience serving me?"

   
   

5. Practice Mindful Eating: Eating mindfully will help you learn to respond versus react and, as a bonus, positively affect the reduction of emotional eating. 
   Mindfulness is fully experiencing the present moment and slows you down from racing to your next thing.

   
   

6. Check-in With Your Emotions: It is okay to take time to feel. You may ask, what does that mean? Most of us live in a constant state of stress, anxiety, anger, etc., and then want the quick fix, which often leads to further dysregulation of our emotions and may lead to emotional eating. Taking the time to discover what it is (the stressor) and naming your emotion makes a difference. Taking a mindful pause and finding tools and skills to handle that emotion will make a positive difference. Finding time to calm soothe is far more productive than functioning on overdrive.

   
   

7. Create a Healthy Environment: We all need a space that soothes our souls. It could begin with having a clutter-free environment, laundry put away, and an empty kitchen sink. Research shows that clutter negatively impacts our emotional and mental health.
   Whether changing a paint color to something more relaxing or filling your space with plants and flowers, take a minute to discover how to make your environment feel warm, cozy, and welcoming—a place to breathe for a minute.

Are you ready to take your first step in nourishing yourself this year?

Give yourself the gift this year to create the change you want!

Have questions?