Self-Care Strategies for Beating the Winter Blues”
Hi everyone! I hope everyone made it through the January blues and is ready for more daylight at the end of our days. Just in time for a month of self-love.
Did you know January is known for being a depressing month? It’s actually attributable to a perfect storm of factors colliding. These factors include, post holiday letdown, less daylight and cold, wet weather.
These “blues” are a common form of temporary sadness, (or even just feeling a bit down) that settles in after an occasion or big event. In this case, the January blues tend to settle in after the holidays.
You may have noticed a period of lower energy, maybe a desire to stay shut in for a while. That’s normal after a period of intense socializing and having to focus on social commitments.
Symptoms of January blues include mild sadness or feeling bummed out. If you’re experiencing January blues you may also experience symptoms such as difficulty sleeping, or sleeping too much, a change in appetite, a sadness that just settles in. You may notice a decrease in energy level or a lack of interest in daily activities, and even a certain level of irritability.
Make today count…not in a “get more work done” way….but use this day to heal your mind from all the garbage you have dealt with all week, that can’t be helped.”
Patricia Polocco – Author
January blues should resolve within a few days, and many people are still able to function perfectly normally, even if they feel a bit down.
While Valentine’s Day may dominate the month, it’s good to remember that February is here to remind us about having a strong self-care regimen in our daily life. After all, we should all be the leading lady in our own life!
Be the leading lady of your own life!
Being the leading lady of your own life means taking charge of your narrative, embracing your strengths, and pursuing your passions with confidence and purpose.
It’s about owning your story, making choices that align with your values, and carving out a path that reflects your true essence.
When you’re the protagonist of your own journey you are prioritizing self-care, setting boundaries, and advocating for yourself in all aspects of life. It’s about stepping into your power, embracing your uniqueness, and living authentically, unapologetically, and fully.
February is an excellent opportunity to focus on self-love and self-care. In recent years, there has indeed been such growing movement towards redefining Valentine’s Day as a day to celebrate all forms of love, including love for oneself. It represents a cultural shift towards valuing self-love, self-care, and self-empowerment. It encourages individuals to break away from societal norms and embrace the idea that spending time alone can be a fulfilling and enriching experience.
It’s so encouraging to see this « love yourself first » theme showing up everywhere in various campaigns, and on social media in February.
Personal growth is my passion, so of course I embrace the modern version of the month of love, because why not encourage people to reflect on their relationship with themselves. I say yes! to practicing more self-compassion, and engaging in activities that nourish our mental, emotional, and physical well-being.
That’s why I have created the February 28-Day Self-Care Challenge! I’m so excited to do this!
If you’re subscribed to this blog, you don’t need to sign up. You will automatically get a weekly email with the daily self-care challenges for the upcoming week.
You can also catch the daily post on my Facebook page Soaring Soul and Vibes and please feel free to share it with friends. Self-care is so important and we need to do a better job integrating activities in our day like movement, nourishment, self-reflection, creativity, connecting with others and mindfulness.
The Power of Intention
Intentions work by focusing your thoughts, energy, and actions towards a specific outcome or state of being. When you set an intention, you are essentially declaring your commitment to manifesting a particular desire or goal.
“When you’re connected to the power of intention, everywhere you go, and everyone you meet, is affected by you and the energy you radiate. As you become the power of intention, you’ll see your dreams being fulfilled almost magically, and you’ll see yourself creating huge ripples in the energy fields of others by your presence and nothing more.”
― Wayne W. Dyer, The Power of Intention: Learning to Co-create Your World Your Way
It’s important to note that setting intentions is not about controlling outcomes or forcing things to happen. Instead, it’s about setting a direction and being open to the flow of life, trusting that the universe will support you in manifesting your desires in the best possible way.
Overall, setting intentions can shape the way your brain processes information, directs attention, and regulates emotions, ultimately influencing your thoughts, behaviors, and outcomes.
Since February is the month of love and harmony, here are some intentions for harmonious relationships and interactions with others.
1. Empathy: I intend to empathize with others, seeking to understand their perspectives and feelings without judgment.
2. Communication: I intend to communicate openly, honestly, and respectfully, fostering clear and effective dialogue.
3. Compassion: I intend to show compassion and kindness towards others, offering support and encouragement whenever needed.
4. Boundaries: I intend to set healthy boundaries, respecting my own needs and the boundaries of others to maintain balance and mutual respect.
5. Authenticity: I intend to be authentic and genuine in my interactions, expressing myself truthfully and allowing others to do the same.
6. Forgiveness: I intend to practice forgiveness and let go of resentments, choosing understanding and reconciliation over holding onto grudges.
By setting these intentions, you can cultivate a nurturing environment where relationships thrive, conflicts are resolved constructively, and connections deepen with sincerity and compassion.
What’s trending
In his TEDx talk, Robert Waldinger, a clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, director of the Center for Psychodynamic Therapy and Research at Massachusetts General Hospital, and director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, shares three important lessons learned from a 75-year study as well as some practical wisdom on how to build a fulfilling, long life filled with true happiness and satisfaction.
What Makes a Good Life?
1. Social connections are good for us, and loneliness kills. It turns out people who are more socially connected to family, to friends, to the community are happier, they’re physically healthier, and they live longer than people who are less connected. People who are more isolated than they want to be from others find that they are less happy, their health declines earlier in midlife, their brain functioning declines sooner, and they live shorter lives than people who are not lonely, Dr. Waldinger explains.
2. Keeping your close relationships, closer. It’s not the number of close friends you have, or whether or not you’re in a committed relationship, but the quality of your close relationshipsthat matter. Living in the midst of conflict is bad for your health. High-conflict marriages without much affection, according to Dr. Waldinger, are perhaps worse than getting divorced. And living in the midst of good, warm relationships is protective.
3. Good relationships don’t just affect our bodies, they protect our brains. The same study also showed that being in a securely attached relationship to another person in your 80s is protective, that the people who are in relationships where they feel they can count on the other person in times of need, those people’s memories stay sharper and longer.
Shameless Plug
Finally, if you haven’t heard, then I am happy to let you know that I have added a Self-Care Journal to my series, available on Amazon.
This self-care journal is very user-friendly for first-time journal keepers, and eases you into the practice of setting daily intentions that prioritize your wellness. You will quickly discover how simple it is to make it a part of your mindful living.
Users like how the journal is a time-saving way to take a daily inventory of what is going on in their life and found it to be a great way to add to the self-care portion of their day. Plus, repeating the thoughtful affirmations will help you focus on the positive aspects of your life.
Filled with prompts and simple activity logs for day or night, this journal helps you develop a habit of regular self-care to carry throughout your life.
This journal is perfect for those who are looking to
• Add positivity in their day
• Train their mindset to focus on what’s truly important
• Add to their relaxation time
• Develop a self-care routine
• Create more time for their spiritual journey
• Develop habits that help them
