How I Like To Relax... Or At Least Try To.
Ever heard of a self-care menu? I hadn't either, until my nutritional therapist introduced me to the practice.
If you, like me, find yourself in a nonconsensual relationship with stress and/or anxiety, this might come in handy. Whether you are inherently predisposed to dealing with high levels of stress - puts hand up - or going through a particular difficult time, don’t forget that you are highly likely surrounded with friends and family that care about you and your wellbeing and can help easen the burden of whatever you may be feeling, all it takes a bit of courage to talk about what’s going on in your life, so you can take appropriate steps to help yourself deal with it in a healthy way.
I think it’s fair to say that constant access to worldwide events, both good and bad (mostly bad), can be the source of many people’s stress. Do we have a moral responsibility to ensure we contribute to positive change? Yes! Even at the cost of our mental health? No. I limit my access to the news and have done so for years, not because I want to turn a blind eye to injustice, but because I cannot handle a constant stream of mostly negative headlines.
I can’t help that I am not resilient enough to deal with it, and if you can’t either, you need to take whatever steps necessary to protect yourself.
REMEMBER this is not medical advice and should not be treated as such. Consult a professional before trying anything that could negatively impact your health or making any changes to your lifestyle.
What’s On Your Self-Care Menu?
It was back in 2023, when I worked with a nutritional therapist, that I learnt A LOT about how my body works (or doesn’t, in some respects). One of her suggestions on how to help lower stress levels was putting together a self-care menu. A selection of things that you enjoy doing, that can help calm you down when you need it the most.
I organised my menu by length of time, so I could choose something depending on how much time I had or wanted to spend on a certain task.
I went to the Paperless Post website, chose a cute template, wrote down all my activities and took a screenshot (lol). I printed it out and stuck it inside my bathroom cabinet. It couldn’t be simpler.
Here are some ideas that might inspire your self-care menu:
Gardening (indoor and outdoor!). Spending time pruning plants, deadheading flowers, health-checking them for any pests (aphids are my life-long nemesis), do they need some water?, repotting, assessing their light needs, the list goes on. Make sure you get your hands dirty, touching soil is good for our immune system.
Cooking/Baking for pleasure. Cooking can be a chore, so this one needs to be a fun cooking project, or else it might have the opposite effect.
Playing with your pets. This one is a two-for-one, great for everyone involved.
Going out for a walk, see the light of day. If you live near a park, take a stroll around greenery, fresh air, especially if it’s sunny. Take in some of the sunlight, and expose as much skin to it as possible (10- 15 minutes is enough for vitamin D production). The app Dminder can help you determine when the best time to go out is for maximum benefit. I recommend you read up on why exposing ourselves to the light of the day throughout the day (mornings and evenings) is beneficial for our circadian rhythm, which directly impacts the health of our mitochondria.
Practising creativity. Such as painting, drawing, collaging, making a vision board, knitting, doing a make-up look, putting outfits together on Whering 👀 (I swear I’m not getting paid to talk about them, I’m just utterly obsessed with the app).
Watching a comfort movie. You don’t have to tell me twice to do this one. Pride & Prejudice, anyone? The Devil Wears Prada? The Princess Diaries? The Parent Trap? Anything Nancy Meyers.
Reading or looking through a picture book. I love coffee table books.
Journaling. Still trying hard to keep up with this one, but I have noticed that writing down how I’m feeling can help me process it.
A warm drink, especially on a cold day. Like tea, preferably served on your finest teapot and teacup (Burleigh for me), if you are into that… Elevates your day the moment you pour the first cup. Don’t forget that certain herbal infusions can also help reduce stress, like lemon balm, chamomile, and peppermint.
I hope you found this useful, I love to hear what your self-care menu looks like.
Further Reading
Managing stress and building resilience - Mind.org.uk
Everything to Know About Your Circadian Rhythm - Healthline
Exposure to Natural Light During the Day May Help You Sleep Better - Healthline.