How to stress less...

6 things that help me to stress less...

      1)      Planning/prepping meals.

I know what you’re thinking; boring, time consuming, etc, etc. But seriously, a couple of lists, a shopping trip, and the odd hour in the kitchen- makes my week SO much easier.

Popping to the supermarket EVERY day on your lunch break adds up. Heading for the £3 meal deal? May sound like nothing but doing it every day easily adds up. Does £15 a week still sound ok? £60 a month? £720 a year? Ok, I’m taking it a bit too far now- you get the point! But, aside from the money- a ham sandwich and a bag of crisps really just doesn’t cut it for me- not when I can make delicious, nutritious home-made meals. And yes, I do feel smug when I’m strolling in the office with my Mediterranean vegetables with quinoa. Basic AND proud!! So take a couple of hours on a Sunday to plan and prep some meals that you can throw in the freezer and grab throughout the week. It will save you making a last minute trip to a supermarket or fast food joint on the daily- it will be better for you and for your bank balance!

 

     2)      Reading

As a child I was all about reading. I was known for being able to finish a book in one sitting and could spend hours wandering around a book shop searching for my next read! As I approached my teenage years the only thing you would find me reading is OK magazine or a take away menu… Now I’m in my twenties, I’m happy to say I’ve found my love for reading again. Just lately I’ve been reading personal development books such as ‘The Goddess Revolution’ by Mel Wells & ‘Who says you cant, you do’ Daniel Chidiac- I love how much they open my mind and help to retrain my brain away from all of the wrong beliefs we develop through our lives. I try to set at least half an hour aside for myself at the end of a busy day to just get lost in a book. It helps me to relax, switch off from my day and leads me in to the best sleep ever.

      3)      Exercise/Being Outdoors

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ll know I’m very much in to my fitness and I love staying active. Not only does it make my body feel healthy and amazing, it has a huge impact on my mindset too! Even more importantly its helped me to rebuild a positive relationship with food. I’m currently loving strength training at the gym, its helping both my body and mind to become stronger and I can’t explain the feeling I get after each session. It’s not all about heading to the gym though, every week I try to get at least one long walk in. There’s something about just being outside in the fresh air and noticing everything around me that just makes me feel so grounded and grateful- it’s definitely my pick me up!

Why it's ok to look back...

We’ve all heard the phrase ‘don’t look back’ and whilst I agree we should focus on the present, I feel there are times when looking back is needed to remind us just how far we’ve come.

Comparing my 2016 to my 2017 so far…

When I think back to last year, I can honestly say it was one of the toughest years I’ve experienced. Consumed by mental illness, my days were filled with despair and there were many times that I doubted I would ever get better. I was trapped in the grips of anorexia, focusing each day on just how little I could eat- nothing else came close to mattering. I was both physically and mentally drained and was becoming weaker each day. I built a barrier around my self, blocking most family and friends out. I watched people around me worry and it tore me apart, but all I could do was continue to punish my self.  After weeks of collapsing and struggling to even get up the stairs, I was sent off work- my entire days revolved around my illness and it had convinced me that I could never be without it. With out going too much in depth, my illness almost lost me every thing- it almost cost me my life.

Fast foreward to this year, and things have slowly but surely improved. I started therapy through the NHS, which forced me to break down my barriers and talk about thoughts and beliefs I’ve carried with me for years. I slowly broke out of my comfort zone to challenge these and create a whole new outlook.

Lets talk Body Image

 Of course, as a girl recovering from an eating disorder- working on body image is right up there on my priorities, however this should be the same for everybody! The way we see ourselves has a huge impact on the way that we live our lives.

Firstly, we’re our own worst critics. When we look in the mirror, 99% of us will focus on that one part of our body we don’t like. Big hips? Big legs? Flat bum? Bum too big? (Is that possible!?) no abs? You name it, we all have our pinpoints that we just don’t like. Wheras when we look at someone else we’re immediately drawn to the best parts of them. Then we do the whole comparison thing and make ourselves feel even worse that we already do about ourselves. So how do we stop doing this?
We need to recognise that we’re doing it in order to change it!! This is pretty easy when we reflect on the whole- but it’s about realising that we’re doing it at the time we’re doing it! This is when we can make a change and start to challenge our thought process.