Foundations
Our foundations build up, over time, because of what we do every day. How we use our bodies, how we use our minds, creates the person we become.
Notice your intention
Your intention to care for yourself comes from a good place. Respect the generosity and kindness around your intention. This will get you further than bullying yourself into new behaviour.
Find a routine you can sustain. When you start a new thing, start slowly. Find an activity you can tolerate for 10 or 20 minutes a day and build it into your routine. You need to (gently) do it even when you’re not in the mood, so don’t make it ambitious.
Don’t look for excitement. The body will not thrive it if is routinely in an excited state (ignore the adverts). Our bodies respond more slowly than our minds, so look for results after days/weeks, not hours. Laying foundations is about doing what pleases the body, not what pleases the mind.
What is good for the body is well known … food, water, daily exercise, spending time in nature, a mix of challenge and relaxation, sharing your life with others.
What do you put into your body?
Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.
- Michael Pollan
Ultra-processed products contain all sorts of stuff, some of which isn’t even food.
What do you put into your mind?
You don’t allow just anything to come into your home: whatever would make a mess, you keep out. Do the same with your mind. Nonsense will corrode your belief in the worth of others and yourself. Use media that has values you respect. Protect your head space
Community
Humans are happiest and healthiest when they have high quality relationships with others.
Professor of Psychiatry Robert Waldinger explains the findings of the Harvard Study of Adult Development. The greatest predictor of good mental and physical health is the quality of personal relationships.
Steer
Our needs change all the time so keeping in balance means adjusting all the time. Habit will make it easier, but don’t expect to arrive in a got-it-now stable place.
Even just trying to care for yourself your heart will respond. Your trust in yourself will get stronger as you begin to see you are in safe hands.