Mental Health Awareness Week

This week I have been doing some work in the corporate sector, helping workers find some peace and calm in their busy days...

Stress, anxiety, depression...sadly, they are all on the rise and finding ways to relax and recharge appear to be getting harder and harder. Being busy becomes a kind of currency or badge of honour - how may times have you said 'sorry, I can't I'm just TOO BUSY...' in the last few weeks, days, hours?

If all the things consuming your time and causing you stress were to be miraculously stripped away right now, what would you fill your time with? What would your passion in life be? Would you travel? Would you spend more time with friends, family, pets? Would you take up any new hobbies or just dedicate more time to the ones you already have? Would you look after your health and wellbeing by exercising more or starting a meditation practice?

Just consider for a few moments what your answers would be to these questions...and then consider whether you could indeed, start incorporating some of those elements into your life right now...

I regularly hear people say they haven't got time to do the things they love or to put themselves first. Taking time out of your day to look after your wellbeing doesn't have to mean you miss out on doing other things. For example, when people hear that I teach yoga they say things like 'oh I'd love to try yoga but I haven't got time'. Ok, lets think about this...a yoga class is an hour long. Factor in say 15 mins drive to and from the class and you're looking a total of 90 mins. There are 1,440 minutes in every day and 10,080 minutes in every week. So, attending one yoga class every week amounts to 6.25% of your day or 0.89% of your overall week. Are you really saying that your wellbeing isn't worth 0.89% of your weekly time budget?

And just in case you're wondering, yes I do spend around 6.25% of every day exercising, doing yoga or meditation because I need to! I'm don't do these things just because that's the kind of person I am, I do them because the kind person I am needs to do them.

Be kind to yourself; value yourself; you are a wonderful, unique individual.

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