"Mindset Matters"

Your mindset matters, how many times have you heard somebody say that? I know I have heard it a lot lately with everything going on around the world.

As someone that has had trouble navigating the realms of anxiety and depression, I spent years wondering what the point of everything was.

A couple of years ago I started dabbling in some self care and mindfulness practices. At first I was hesitant, I felt quite silly. But, I persisted and over time many thoughts and feelings felt like they were melting away. I finally felt more myself again. Feeling better allowed me to grow in other areas of my life too, I finally left my job I despised, and pursued whatever my heart called me to.

5 things that changed my life:

1. Daily gratitude

Simply thinking of 3 things to feel grateful for every day. It can be as simple as feeling grateful for the Sun on your face, the flowers in your garden, a bed to sleep on…

2. Essential oils

Being able to tune in to my own emotions and feel compassion towards those emotions allowed me to feel more alive and human again. You can try breathing in some essential oil and extending some extra love to certain parts of yourself.

3. Creativity

Allowing myself to be silly, have fun and be creative took time. But, once I found things that I could truly enjoy, be myself whilst doing and allow my ego ‘front’ to drop away, I was able to give myself the time and space I so needed. You might try playing at the park, having a dance in the kitchen or having a doodle to really ignite your creativity.

4. Synching my life around my menstrual cycle

This was a big one for me. Allowing myself to understand why I was feeling a certain way helped me to feel more grateful for my body. I realised how incredible the female body is and I now have more knowledge to help me decide what does and doesn’t work with my body and mind at certain times of my cycle.

5. Saying “I get to” instead of “I have to” or “I should”

Rather than shaming what “I have to” or “should" do, I now see it as “I am so lucky to have clothes that I GET TO wash” or “I feel so thankful for my legs and that I GET TO walk to the grocery store with”. It’s fun to practice, notice when you next feel like you ‘have to’ and see if you can switch up your internal language.

There’s no one way to practice mindfulness, take what feels good to you and see how you feel after trying some out.

Hannah xx