Too often, false promises of magic pills, psychotropic meds, and quick fixes seem at first like good ideas, but they may lead to addictions or other side effects in an effort to “escape” and feel happier or more relaxed.
The truth is, there are simple ways to get you from feeling blah to bursting with vitality, without compromising your health in the process. Here are six healthy self-care strategies to help you restore balance in your life.
1. Be Mindful
Simply put, mindfulness is being aware of what you are doing and how you are experiencing life in this moment.
When we aren’t mindful of the physical root of the fatigue, for instance, it’s easy to turn to sugary, caffeine-laden energy drinks, energy pills, or illicit drugs rather than seek help. Do yourself a favor and educate yourself on the basic principles of mindfulness. Take it a step further and practice some beginner mindfulness exercises and see how it can benefit your life in both subtle and profound ways.
2. Eat, Move, and Rest
Nutritious food, exercise, and rest are “medicines” often overlooked when self-medication seems to be such an overwhelming answer to everything. Good food and rest do change your brain’s chemistry for the better. Micro- and macronutrients in food help various areas of our brains communicate properly with each other. Regular exercise also helps balance hormones that can make us jittery, anxious, and out of sorts.3. Create Alignments
You’ve heard it before, and it’s true: We become what we think. However, it’s important to also note we become how we think and act. In my practice, I help people achieve balance and happiness by aligning dreams and aspirations with daily routines and rituals. If we want to be healthy but smoke, for example, there will exist a contradiction causing negative consequences. If we want to be happy, then physical and emotional decisions must be made to achieve this driving desire.
4. Work on What Works
For the next five days say the affirmation “I am good enough for me” 50 times whether you believe it or not. You will begin to notice ways you are “good enough.” Is it that easy? You bet.Let’s say there’s a complex proposal due Monday, the kids have been swapping germs, your throat is starting to feel scratchy, and the car needs new tires. You can’t always change circumstances, but what can you do?
Dive into your memories and go to a time when you felt more empowered. How did you constructively juggle other chaotic periods? Use these memories to better cope with the current situations. Sometimes the solution to a problem is not necessarily the absence of the problem itself, but rather it’s the presence of something that worked before when things were better.
5. Find Wisdom in Problems
No need to stay at a Himalayan monastery to see that within each problem there is wisdom. I explain to people that come to me for therapy, “Instead of fearing the problem, listen and pay attention to what it may be trying to tell you. Clues to the solutions could be there within the problem itself.”
Do you know a couple who fights a lot? Could it be they’re using heated disagreements to bond or spend time together? This often happens. When that “fighting energy” is channeled into spending quality time doing things they once enjoyed together, the issues causing the fights can sometimes evaporate.
6. Train Your Brain
When talking to yourself, are you more positive or negative? Being negative at times is normal. However, problems tend to arise when our negatives outweigh the positives.
Take note of your core and most toxic beliefs. A common one is, “I am not good enough.” For the next five days say the affirmation “I am good enough for me” 50 times whether you believe it or not. You will begin to notice ways you are “good enough.” Is it that easy? You bet.
The next time you are feeling down in the dumps, remember that taking charge of your life and achieving balance starts with thinking well and making decisions in alignment with your visions. I like to say, “Balance is possible.”
© Copyright 2015 GoodTherapy.org. All rights reserved. Permission to publish granted by Lisa C. Palmer, PhD, LMFT, CHT
The preceding article was solely written by the author named above. Any views and opinions expressed are not necessarily shared by GoodTherapy.org. Questions or concerns about the preceding article can be directed to the author or posted as a comment below.
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