Lately, I have been feeling all kinds of stress going on and it has completely affected my work, health and everything. I have been getting hard on myself feeling exhausted and completely out of energy yet telling myself there is just no time to rest or nap. I have been having more migraines than usual and I’m just overall burnt out. I started thinking about how it’s totally important to start really listening to your body and figuring out what you need to be able to perform better later on and that lead me to thinking how many of us sometimes get stuck in this position.
So what does “listening to your body” actually mean? It means slowing down, turning out the nonsense and really asking yourself how are YOU feeling? With all the non stop activity going on around us with work, family, friends, relationships, home and more, it’s really so easy to ignore what is going on inside of us.
I’ve totally been there these days – living my life at a way faster pace than I should be. Saying yes to things and juggling a million things at once and feeling completely exhausted. Instead of taking a nap or adjusting to my schedule I’d get some caffeine in me and keep going. My stress has been at an all time high and well for someone who suffers from major anxiety it’s just not a good combo.
So here are things I’m learning to implement in my life when it comes to really slowing down and listening to your body.
1. Slow it down.
I have a hard time with this since I always want to accomplish a million things in my day and when I’m overwhelmed and stressed I try to just push through. But I’ve realized it’s so important to slow down. If you are feeling tired, take a break or a nap. If your eyes hurt, stop looking at the computer screen. If you feel antsy, go for a walk. We can always pick up the pace when we want but we definitely need to learn to slow it down when our body is telling us it desperately needs to.
2. Relax and breathe deep.
When you breathe normally it doesn’t do much. But if you ever take the time to just sit there with no distractions and really work on breathing in as deep as you possibly can you will feel SO amazing. I know it sounds weird but it totally works. I actually started doing this when my iWatch started reminding me and I would close my eyes, take in a few deep breaths and instantly feel renewed.
Remember to relax. When you’re stiff and tense, you’ll just feel stiff and tense. You want something more than that. Use your inhales to expand and feel into everything you’ve got. Use your exhales to soften everything you can feel.
3. Self Care
Some of us are great at creating exercise and meal plans for ourselves, however not so great at looking at our lives holistically and thinking about what we need to care for ourselves. This often includes things like Me Time, pampering, and most importantly – rest and relaxation. It is in these times of self care and rest that we can find ourselves connecting to our bodies and our needs. Developing a self-care practice can be highly beneficial for your health and sanity. I am trying to focus more on things that I need rather than what I need to do and it’s so nice to pamper yourself a little from time to time.
If you guys are feeling at all overwhelmed, make sure to stop and take time for you and your body. Slow down, take a nap if you need or full on just take a day off if you have to! I promise it will be way better take one day off than to keep going not feeling your best and not performing your best in the end. XOXO
Yes to listening to your body!! Definitely so important!
http://www.rdsobsessions.com
What an important message. I have been feeling all out of sorts and when I couldn’t complete a task I just felt overwhelmed but when I tried to complete I felt worse than if I just stopped and sat down to clear my mind and heart. I have been slowing down as of late and I can’t say how much better I feel. Listening to your body really helps. It knows best! I hope you are feeling better too!
Maureen | http://www.littlemisscasual.com