April is National Stress Awareness month. The pace of modern life can lead us in a constant state of stress that we come to believe is normal. Doing that full on job, running round after the family, having an exciting social life, and still going to the gym to keep in shape. After all society sees being busy is a sign of success and social media has compounded that.
We are taught to aspire to being ‘on it’ 24/7. A weekend just pottering at home starts to feel like failure. Shouldn’t we be out there living our best lives, travelling, meeting friends, making memories. Aggghhh! Who can do that and not burn out or at least feel like they are failing in someway?
We need to reclaim the art of doing very little. Chilling at home and enjoying quiet time. Read a book, put your feet up… do some embroidery (or other crafting).
Find something that can take your focus, work at your own pace and feed your sense of achievement in a different way.
I love getting engrossed in my embroidery whilst listening to an audio book. It feeds my soul. I find my flow state.
Flow state is a mental space where you forget about the everyday distractions around you and is shown to be amazing for your physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. It’s not only meditation that can help you find it. It may be painting warhammer figures, gardening or just lost in a good novel.
I still have times where I feel like I’m not making the most of my time, but my physical restrictions mean I can’t be living that busy ‘insta perfect’ life. So I’ve switched how I think of it. It’s recharging.
Don’t think of an afternoon spent like that as wasted time, in fact its a form of exercise that improves your health.
Studies show that even 45 minutes spent doing an art activity reduces the level of cortisol (stress hormone) in your blood. So why not build that time into your day/week?
I like the idea of habit stacking; which is currently having a moment due to the book Atomic Habits (I haven’t read it, I’d rather listen to a history podcast). But linking a new habit to an existing one is common sense.
So how about when you flop on the sofa in the evening and turn on the telly, why not reach for your bag of Mindful Stitching and sew whilst you watch the latest programme? In stead of compulsive scrolling on your phone whilst you watch telly, do some stitching and fell yourself relax as the process of sewing awakes the reward centre of your brain? I always have a project or two to hand by the sofa ready to work on.
You don’t need ‘an extra hour in the day’, you don’t need time and space away from everyone. You can build a healthy habit in without it being a chore. And be kind to yourself, it takes time to build habits.
Remember that wellbeing isn’t just about physical exercise, but looking after your mental & emotional health too.
What simple steps can you do to add a bit of ‘downtime’ into your life?
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