Mindfulness Jar

We all get down, but we struggle even more in the winter. Here are my top 5 tips to help you manage this winter blues!

1

Get Outside and get Moving

Get some fresh air in your lungs and blow away those cobwebs. Getting moving allows the blood to flow. Exercise releases the endorphins that make you happy, even better if you can get out in the sun. As the sun can help boost the body’s serotonin levels (happy hormone). So this perfect duo is my top tip to beat the winter blues.

2

Make Someone Smile

We all know how nice it feels to receive a random act of kindness, and that feeling can be doubled by being that person doing the giving. So, go one spread some love. It doesn’t need to be big, a cuddle, give someone a compliment, send a postcard, a small gift, pay someone’s bus fair, declutter and give to charity. Check out my Facebook stories for February’s spreading love activities.

3

Diet

I am the worst for this, honestly. I know how tempting it is to eat the things that give us that little endorphins hit (unhealthy foods sugar/fast food) but the come down can be harder to combat especially in the winter. So, try to eat a rainbow, make it fun, and give yourself a reward for doing it. Us humans stick to things if we have an instant gratification. Why not give the house a challenge, whoever eats the most fruit or veg that day gets a Fredo bar or even change it for a few squares of dark chocolate? We need to maintain a balanced diet so our bodies can absorb the vitamins and nutrition we need to balance our hormones. For example, vitamin B helps the brain produce serotonin.

4

Make Bedtime Routine

As adults we are the worst at this. Being sleep deprived can have a big effect on our mood.  We spend our whole childhood fighting against our bedtimes when really, it’s probably the best lesson given to us. As humans we have a body clock, back in the day of being cave people we woke when the sun came up and went to sleep when the sun went down which allowed our bodies to rest. Fast forward to 2020 were all living in front of a screens, trying to pack as much as we can in to one day, which leads up to falling into bed and not getting a quality sleep. Setting a bedtime routine allows our body to know it’s time to rest, time to shut off our auto pilot.  My bedtime routine is to have a warm shower, get in my pjs, have a warm drink, a safety pee and brush my teeth. I then get in to bed, set my alarm and give myself hand massage with lavender oil. Everyone’s bedtime routine will be different but just make it a routine, so your body knows when its time to sleep letting it be rest for your great day ahead.

5

Do Something for YOU that Makes you Smile (everyday).

Living in this day and age, it can be hard to do everything one adult has to do. Let alone doing something nice for ourselves. So, my challenge for you is to plan. Making a plan so we’re more than likely to do it. Make a mind map of all the things that make you smile, stick it somewhere you can see it and do something off it every day. Some of my things are listening to music, dancing, makeup, a costa coffee, seeing friends, smiling to people, watching the sunset, mediation or having a bubble bath. When we smile it sets off the happy hormones in our bodies. Go on! We only have one life make it a good one!

Thanks for reading, i would love to know what you thought, and if you tried any .

Stay fabulous

Charlie from Q Wellness