Romans 12:12
Rejoice in hope, Be patient in tribulation, Be constant in prayer.
Today my dear friend, Jamie Utt, reminded me of the importance of taking care of myself. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in life and the hurts of others, that I struggle with self care.... and maybe a little more often than sometimes. I can spin into self destruct mode without even noticing it.
As part of one of his advocate classes, he was instructed to make a self care plan. I've really never put a lot of thought into this before, but I think it's a great idea!
As I head into my final semester and a season of travel, here are a few things off the running list of things I can do to take care of my self;
- Listen to worship music, Aaron Watson or some good oldies
- Read some from The Ultimate Love Letter
- Massage the base of my neck, my hands or my feet
- Sit on the floor in the kitchen
- Cuddle with a puppy
- Serving others (in a non-stressful way)
- Take a nap
- Sing
- Write from the heart on one of my blogs
- Knit or Crochet.... even if the end goal is to have something to pull out
- Go get nasty sweaty at the gym
- Sit at a piano and wander across the keys
- Drink some tea
- Give things away
- Bake!
- Write a letter to someone I haven't talked to in a while
- Make a list of blessings/thankfulness
- Paint a canvas
- Go for a prayer walk
- Pop in a musical
- Take pretty pictures
- Have some quiet time or even a half day for a God Date
- Journal
- Watch the Free Hug video on YouTube
- Sink into a Bubble Bath in a room full of candles
- Hangout with some of my favorite kiddos
- Make kool aid Popsicles in an ice tray
- Call up one of my sisters, parents, adopted parents, church mates, or Brandon
- Doodle and make random lists
- Go do some target shooting
- Do something crafty
- Read through some old journals to remember how far I've come
- Watch Jeopardy, Friends, Boy Meets World, or Wishbone
- Pull the hair out of the drain, blow out a keyboard or one of my other weird cleaning delights
- Look at things in my "happy times" box
- Have a mini dance party
- Make weird sounds into the face of a fan (if you haven't talked into a fan before, you really should)
- Braid my hair
- Curly up with a fluffy blanket
- Peruse through the photos on my hard drive
- Cry in the shower
- Laugh
- Chew a large wad of gum and practice blowing really big bubbles
- Rub my ear lobes (like what they did on Runaway Bride.... it really does work!)
- Go for a hike
- Practice Gleeking
- Sing in the shower
- Go smell pretty flowers
