Checking in…

How is it March already??? Where’s the time going? 😳

I have been absent from the blog for a while now. Lack of so-called inspiration is one reason for this but is not the main culprit. Truth is, final year work is catching up on me and stress is building up fast. So, I find myself doing even less of what I enjoy doing and more time focused on doing actual uni work.

But, I wanted to check in and see how everyone is doing 😊 How has 2017 been treating you?

Myself, I’m counting the days till summer when I can actually relax without feeling guilty for doing so 😉  Till then, lots of work (and some tears) to achieve the current goal – graduation!!

In the meantime, I try to keep this in mind:

I hope to manage to find more time to write up more blog posts. If you don’t see me around, pray for me; you’ll know that I’ll probably be at home or at the library, on my laptop, working away to meet deadlines 😉

xx

 

Image credit: Pinterest/Carmen Monica

It’s a new year – time to take care of yourself!

First of all, I would like to start by wishing you a happy new year in the first blog post of 2017! I hope you had a great start to the year! 😊

This post will be all about new year’s resolutions, but with a bit of a twist…

New year, new you right? It’s what everyone seems to be repeating to each other this January. The New Year brings with it a promise of a new start, of a clean slate. With this in mind, many strive to think of resolutions they will try to achieve and follow in the coming year, often however failing after a couple of attempts. If you are part of the percentage who manages to successfully follow your resolutions, then hats off to you. But if on the contrary you tend to be part of the other (larger) segment of the population who tries but never manages to maintain your resolutions, spare yourself the disappointment in a month’s time and try to focus on something which is hopefully more achievable.

You see the problem with many resolutions is that they are things which we are not in habit of doing and expect ourselves to take up in an instant. Sorry to break it to you but habits do not work that way. I mean take my case; I am generally not a sporty person so setting myself up to go to the gym or take up a sport for that matter at least once a week is most likely to fail as one, I am not a sport kind of person, and two, I will probably use the excuse of not having time to put it off anyway.  (This is not to say that I never think that I should be going to a gym especially around April and May, when the weather becomes warmer outside… maybe one day I will actually commit to going to the gym but not quite now 😉)

With this in mind, I thought of setting more achievable goals if ever there were ones, specifically two main ones: taking care of my mental health and also physical health. We take on so many things and get ourselves so busy that we tend to neglect or rather not think about how all of this affects us mentally and physically. We all know that we should do at least an annual general check up at our physician but in reality how many of us really make that appointment?

Referring to mental health, there’s one thing that generally stops many of us from considering it, and that is mainly the stigma around mental health. When I refer to mental health, I don’t mean necessarily looking out for mental illnesses although they are equally important. Have you noticed that after a particularly stressful time, say working on a big project at work or final exams at university, you go through a period of constantly forgetting things, finding it difficult to articulate thoughts as some words do not come so readily to you, get tired more easily, and other such ‘symptoms’? They are all signs of a tired brain, that you basically need a break. And that is what I am referring to when I say mental health. Learn to recognise when you are burned out and take action. Everyone has there own personal way of relaxing so I leave it up to you to decide on what works well for you. A holiday always helps as does a week of taking it easy and not doing anything.

As to physical health, although exercise should be on everyone’s list of things to do as it not only helps to look good but has other positive effects as well, I refer to keeping your body healthy. Do yourself a favour and don’t keep postponing your annual check-up or that eye test that you’ve been meaning to do for months. Having a balanced and healthy diet also helps. Don’t restrict yourself with some kind of diet as let’s face it, that is basically setting up yourself to failure. But do be more mindful of what you consume. And finally, drink plenty of water! I know that it’s good, you know that it’s good, but neither of us does it. If it helps, download an app to help you monitor your fluid intake. Whatever it takes, do try your utmost to drink those 2 litres of water everyday. You’ll thank yourself later!

So, to reiterate, mental and physical health are important and should not be neglected. This new year focus more on yourself! Here’s to the year of you! 🥂

Head over to Pinterest and follow @thoughtfulmuse for some ideas on how to take care of your mental and physical health:

For those days when motivation is lacking…

I’m sure I am not the only one who has those kinds of days where nothing seems to go right, where nothing is done with enthusiasm, and all you feel like doing is get into bed and sleep it off to start afresh the next day.

During the years I have realised that doing certain things when I’m having one of these moments tends to help, especially at times where you cannot simply go the bed and wish for it to go away, but rather you have to plough on and meet deadlines.

There’s one important thing to keep in mind in all of this. Realise that YOU are the primary person who can help yourself when feeling like this. It’s amazing what we can do for ourselves to perk us up in such moments. Tell yourself that you can do it despite the apathy, sleepiness, boredom or whatever else is keeping you from continuing what you’re doing or have to do. This is the most important thing to start with. Then of course, there are other ‘helpers’ to help you find that amount of motivation which will get you through 🙂

Reading for me works wonders. If I am feeling unfocused and cannot get my head into what I am doing, I take a break and spend some time reading a book. Now, this can be anything. I tend to stick to novels but you might prefer other reading material. Essentially what you will be doing is taking a break. So, if you’re not into reading, find something that you find helps when facing such situations, whether this is exercising, walking your dog, or whatever else tickles your fancy.

Music is another essential especially when I want to block out any disturbance that is causing the lack of focus. Spotify is a good starting place (although be careful to not find yourself spending precious minutes going through every playlist to find the perfect one *I know, I know, we’ve all been there*). I suggest instrumental or classical music if you are working on something that needs concentration or focus. Or else, if what you need to be doing does not require particular concentration, say you have to clean around the house or cook (which although an enjoyable pastime for some, can still be a bit of a chore when you don’t feel like it), blast out your favourite music to boost your energy levels up. (Scroll down for some suggestions 😊)

And, as if you needed another excuse to eat chocolate, it is proven that chocolate stimulates the production of endorphins, serotonin and phenylethylamine amongst others, all of which help elevate moods and act as anti-depressants therefore leading to an overall sense of well-being and increase focus and alertness. Furthermore, studies have shown that chocolate has a positive effect on memory. Read more here, you know, just in case you’re having some doubts about it all 😉.

What I would personally avoid is going through social media. I know, I know… it’s easy and a readily available form of entertainment. But trust me, it can do more to put you out of focus than the contrary. You know, those “I’ll watch one video on YouTube to have  short break” moments which usually result in video marathons, or the constant refreshing of your Facebook timeline just in case something new comes up that you haven’t seen before. It’s a vicious cycle which is very hard to get out of before many (precious) hours have elapsed. So do yourself a favour and try to control the times you check your social media.

These are just some ideas… let’s say inspiration to help you figure out what works for you 😊.

Till next time! x

For when you are in a mellow kind of mood and need to seriously concentrate on the task at hand….

 

For when you want to dance around and sing out loud….

It’s in the simple things…

Have you ever caught yourself thinking how the smallest thing in life – be it sipping a cup of tea next to a window with the rain splashing outside or the feeling of fresh bedsheets after a very long day – has made you feel that little bit better? The poem below struck a chord – in few words, it managed to capture the very essence of what I personally like and love. I find that a particularly good book or a beautiful piece of music can make me smile despite being angry, stressed, busy.

Research has proved that simple things do contribute to that feel good factor. Whilst doing some research for this blog post, I came across this excerpt from a book which hits the nail on its head:

“One group was told to focus on all the upbeat things they could find— sunshine, flowers, smiling pedestrians. Another was to look for negative stuff— graffiti, litter, frowning faces. The third group was instructed to walk just for the exercise. At the end of the week, when the walkers’ well-being was tested again, those who had deliberately targeted positive cues were happier than before the experiment. The negatively focused subjects were less happy, and the just plain exercisers scored in between. The point, says Bryant, is that “you see what you look for. And you can train yourself to attend to the joy out there waiting to be had, instead of passively waiting for it to come to you.” – Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life by Winifred Gallagher

(read more here: The Simple Thing That Makes the Happiest People in the World So Happy)

If we only set our minds to focusing on the small things that surround us and learn to appreciate them more, rather than expect expensive or elaborate objects or experiences to give us that feel-good factor, I do believe that we can indeed help ourselves become happier. Mind you, a little indulgence here and there hurts nobody. God knows a holiday somewhere, even a short weekend break, can work wonders especially after a particularly stressful period. Or a little retail therapy, be it shopping for books, clothes, homeware, tools, whatever makes you happy, also helps alleviate a bit of tension when needed. Let’s just say that focusing on the small things contributes to a degree of wellbeing all year round. So stop and smell the roses, take time to enjoy your morning cup of coffee, read a couple of pages from your favourite book, smile to a stranger on your way to work, listen to some music, take a nap, and eat that piece of cake!

I leave you here with the hope of having inspired you to not take anything for granted especially the simple things – they have a habit of making you feel better much quicker and effectively than other more complex or expensive things can.

x

Image credit: http://thelittlefrenchbullblog.tumblr.com

A warm welcome

Welcome and thank you for making your way to this small spot on the internet I call mine  🙂

I am sure I am not the first and certainly not the last person who has been thinking about starting a blog for a very long while. All sorts of excuses have stopped me throughout the years – university work, work life, family life, keeping up a social life with friends, and many many more. So why now you ask? Good question… Now in my fourth and final year at university, as part of a study-unit that I am following, I need to set up a blog. Hardly the  best of motivations right? But it does serve as the necessary push to start doing something I have been postponing for God knows how long!

What will this blog be about you ask? The internet is a saturated place full of interesting finds, some of which hit home more than others. Through this blog, I would like to create a space where these ‘finds’ are collected together and pondered upon. In other words, I like to think of the blog as a space where I can stop from a busy lifestyle and reflect a bit about life and what goes around me.

I hope you will manage to find that one post which will hopefully make your day a bit brighter and your mind a bit more at peace  🙂

x