What’s in your wellbeing toolkit?
In times of stress, sadness, anxiety, frustration… what’s your “go to” activity to self soothe?
If you’re like me it will vary…
“Sometimes I just need to get outside in whatever the weather or be near water… I often need to be by the sea!!! Sometimes I need to burn energy and either ride my bike, go for a run or dance… sometimes I need to cry or just curl up on my couch with a blanket… and other times, connecting with a friend really helps.” (Jen Price)
A wellbeing toolkit is a collection of strategies, resources and practices that can help you improve and maintain your overall wellbeing. It typically includes techniques or tools to promote your physical, mental and emotional health. Your wellbeing toolkit will be bespoke to you, but here’s my top 10 suggestions (in no particular order) to get you thinking and help you create your own:
RELAXATION & MINDFULNESS: Whatever this means to you... This could be meditation, this could be stillness and quiet time, reading a book, having a bath, getting creative, or it could be mindfulness (in the way you walk or eat). Research has shown that mindful practices help to reduce stress, increase self awareness and improve mental clarity. If you would like to organise a mindful adventure (which could include walking, or biking sessions, find out more here.
BREATHWORK: Practicing different breathwork techniques can help to reduce stress and anxiety, support mindfulness practices and regulate emotions. Different breathing patterns can promote different physical and mental states, so it’s always worth talking to a breathwork coach to find out what is best for your needs. However a great ‘go to’ breath technique is Box Breathing - where you breath in for 4, hold for 4, breathe out for 4 and hold again for 4 - repeat this several times, until you feel more at peace. This breath helps to balance the nervous system because of the equal counts and holds. It can sometimes be very relaxing if you extend the counts (or slow the pace), but always worth discussing this with an expert. You can find out about my introduction to breathwork package here.
JOURNALING: Any notebook will do for this, but perhaps worth having one dedicated to your personal development journey if you haven’t already. Journaling can be a great tool - I often refer to my journal as my ‘best friend’. Research shows that journaling is an effective tool for reducing depression, and managing anxiety and stress. Writing out emotions and thoughts down, can help us to make sense of them, helps us to organise them and often gaining clarity to make rational decisions and conscious choices. If you would like to read more about the ‘Power of Journaling’ you can read my blog here. Or f you would like to receive my FREE journaling guide - request it here: send my free journaling guide.
GRATITUDE PRACTICE: You can use your journal or any notebook for this, or you can use it during meditations or breathwork. Feeling a sense of gratitude is a state of mind, where you appreciate and value what you have right now, regardless of any struggles or challenges, there is ALWAYS something to be grateful for. Finding gratitude for things in the moment, has a ripple effect - it cultivates more positivity in your mindset and happiness and can positively impact those around you too. Write down a list of things/people you are grateful for and see how feel afterwards.
POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS: Similarly, you can also use your journal or notebook for these. This is about flipping your negative stories, into positive ones. Write a list of your personal attributes, skills and strengths. This can be really uncomfortable and tricky for many people, but the more you practice the better you get at it - and actually, this changes neural pathways in your brain, reducing your self doubt and criticism, in turn enhancing your levels of self compassion and self respect. If you find you are stuck a loop of repetitive negative narrative, reach out to get help. You can read more about the benefits of life coaching here.
SOCIAL CONNECTION: Building social relationships and connections contributes to our sense of belonging and our overall happiness and emotional wellbeing. Nurture your relationships with your family, friends and colleagues. Make an effort to reach out to your loved ones, arrange quality time to meet up, or even a phone call. Learning how to set healthy boundaries, can also positively impact relationships around you, because when you look after yourself first and foremost, you will show up a better partner, parent, friend, colleague. You can read more about setting healthy boundaries here.
GETTING ACTIVE: This does not have to be climbing mountains and running marathons… although these are obviously great. It’s more about daily movement than strict exercise. Maybe it’s gardening, dancing, walking, yoga that works well for you - either way, incorporating daily movement somehow into our day is known to improve physical and emotional health. Find something that works for you, stick at it for at least 21 days - this is apparently how long it takes to build a new habit. Start small and realistic, even if its 10/15 mins a day, and just gradually build it up over time. Always worth getting along to a class you enjoy or even getting a personal trainer to kick start things for you. Its never too late to start!! A great read on building new habits to make positive change is ‘Atomic Habits’ by James Clear.
EATING WELL: It’s awash with confusion out there on what’s ‘healthy’ to eat and what’s not. So many factors to think about, so many fad diets, so many opinions and ‘facts’ but the truth is, there is no one thing that works for everyone. Some health coaches on social media will talk about reducing calories, some will talk about increasing proteins. The great thing about working with a good health/nutrition coach is they should look at your life holistically to establish ways to make sustainable changes. I can strongly recommend Sarah Thorburn, founder of Life Glo Wellness - she is a holistic lifestyle and nutrition coach who does just this. More information here.
GETTING OUTSIDE: Time outdoors, fresh air, is proven to improve our overall wellbeing. Whether you prefer ‘green spaces’ (parks, woodlands) or ‘blue spaces’ (rivers, beaches, canals). Your garden or plants/trees in your urban spaces also helps. Find activities to do outdoors and take time to slow down a bit, notice what you are drawn to - maybes it’s smells, sounds, colours, maybe you enjoy the big vistas from higher ground or on a beach, or maybe it’s the smallest details low down on the ground, looking at the wonderful patterns of nature. There is no right or wrong way to spend time outdoors, just make sure you take time to do it as often as you can, ideally every day. Mental Health Foundation have done lots of research on this, you can read more here.
QUALITY SLEEP: Establishing a consistent sleep routine improves the quality of our sleep, which helps to keep us feeling fresh for each day. Consider how you prepare for going to bed each evening. Are there things you could stop doing, and replace them with things that help you to relax and wind down.
I recommend listening to Rangan Chaterrjee’s podcast for all things holistic health, called Feel Better, Live More. His book, Happy Mind, Happy Life is also a great read. More information here.
I am sure there are no big surprises in there, but perhaps it has inspired you to create your own wellbeing toolkit. Take some time to capture what works for you. What will you commit to each day? What do you need to stop/start doing?
So, grab a journal and maybe create a mind map to show your own personal wellbeing toolkit.
I’d love to hear from you if this has helped. Get in touch with me here.
