• Back to Center

    Back to Center: Update 6

    The Recovering Pessimist: Back to Center Update 6 -- With this update I wanted to focus on how journaling has become part of my self-care routine. | www.therecoveringpessimist.me #amwriting #recoveringpessimist #optimisticpessimistI’m getting better with the timing of these Back to Center updates pats self on back. I’ve made mention of self-care (click here and here for earlier blog posts) in the past, but I wanted to devote this update to journaling.

    I’ve always had a journal/diary of some sort. During my teenage years, I wrote to document the highs and lows of my life. I was never consistent in my journaling.  However, now that I’m older, I’ve learned that journaling is a key part of my self-care routine.

    Bridget Jones/Giphy.com
    Bridget Jones/Giphy.com

    For example, I have times where I have too much going on in my head. I could be worried about something and that worry manifests into anxiety. Once anxiety has made its way in, a chain reaction occurs. I can’t concentrate and restful sleep goes M.I.A. I hate feeling that way, especially when I don’t have control over the situation that’s causing the anxiety.

    So one day, I had the bright idea to dust off the journal I’ve been sporadically writing in and conducted a brain dump. Soon as the pen hit the paper and the syllables became words, the anxiety that had my stomach riddled with knots dissipated. I didn’t want the anxiety to come back to cripple me again. Writing in regularly would have to become my new normal. But again, consistency in my journaling wasn’t important to me.

    This is where Google comes in for the win.

    So, about two weeks ago, I got an email from Google telling me that the Google Calendar app I was using on my phone was out of date and that an update was available via Google Play. I updated the app and boy was I impressed.

    The updated version of the app allowed me to set goals for various reasons, specifically “Me Time”. I went ahead and set a goal to practice journaling once a week for 15 minutes in the evening. In return, the app finds the requested time within my calendar to schedule the goal. For me, making journaling a goal AND having it scheduled in my calendar is a mind trick. If I have it scheduled in my calendar, I have to do it.

    So far, adding journaling to my calendar is working. It feels good to keep the anxiety and stress away. Tell me, do you journal? Is journaling part of your self-care plan?

  • Back to Center

    Back to Center: Update 5

    The Recovering Pessimist: Back to Center Update 5 -- In Back to Center 4, I mentioned that I have a decompression period each day to relax. I wanted to go into more detail on how I like to decompress in this update. | www.therecoveringpessimist.me #amwriting #recoveringpessimist #optimisticpessimist

    When I get off work, the first thing I want to do is wind down from the day. Those 1-2 hours allow me to calm my mind and get back to my normal.

    In Back to Center: Update 4, I briefly mentioned that having a decompression period was a crucial aspect of my relaxation plan.

    Since then, my decompression period has become a huge part of my self-care routine. For this update, I wanted to expand upon the specific components that make up my decompression period.

     

    Log Off

    There’s at least one day during the week where by the time I get home, I really don’t want to touch anything electronic other than my TV. I can try to get SOMETHING productive done, but my attempts are futile. My brain wants no parts of productivity sometimes and that’s fine.

    Listen to Music

    It feels great to grab my noise-cancelling headphones (truly a lifesaver) and listen to instrumental music to wind down. Lately, I’ve been enjoying Joey Alexander, in addition to The Piano Bar and Piano Chill playlists on Spotify.

    Brain Dump

    Sometimes, there’s too much going on in my mind. My mind won’t stop and that prevents me from getting a good night’s rest. When I can feel that coming, I tend to write my thoughts in my journal so my mind can relax. As soon as the pen hits the paper, I feel better.

    Take a Nap

    Look. LOOK. LOOK! When I tell you naps are the BESTEST (yes, bestest) thing ever…I ain’t lying. Sometimes you need a nap just to regroup yourself. It can start as a power nap and end up being hours long. But when I wake up from a nap, I feel good all over. Whew!

    Naptime/Giphy.com

     

    Drink Something Relaxing

    Whatever it is (e.g., alcohol, tea, coffee, water, etc.), I hope it helps you feel better. Cheers!

    Karen Walker/Giphy.com
    Karen Walker /Giphy.com

     

    Scream, Laugh, and/or Cry

    I have moments when I go through the motions of wanting to laugh, cry, and/or scream.

    When I want to laugh:

    • I watch YouTube videos. My favorite ones are people doing stupid things and kids being kids.
    • I watch/listen to a lot of comedy shows. My favorites are by Bernie Mac, Katt Williams, Richard Pryor, and Gary Owen.

    When I want to cry:

    • Crying in public is a no-no for me, so I do 99% of my crying sessions at home. As soon as I finish sobbing, I feel sooo much better.

    When I want to scream:

    • Like crying, screaming in public is a no-no. If I’m driving, i just turn the music up and let it out. If I’m at home, I put a pillow over my mouth and let it rip. Immediate relief.
    Watch TV

    When I get home from a rough day, most of the time I don’t want to watch anything that requires a lot of thought. Watching comedy and reality shows along with cartoons really help me to relax.

    Read

    I love to read. Being able to escape from reality for a bit works wonders.

    Reading Books/Giphy.com

    That’s it for now. Tell me, how do you decompress? What works best for you?

    Until next time,

    MsWalton