5 Self-Care Practices for Uncertain Times

Lately I’m observing how many friends and clients are struggling. Whether it’s swimming through collective stress brought on by the current political climate, navigating a career transition, health crisis or relationship/parenting difficulty, or recovering from a financial blow–many are living hour to hour and having a hard time seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

On a recent walk, my dear friend Nicole asked me, “Based on everything you’ve learned over the last 20 years about calming the brain and body and helping to reduce stress/anxiety, what are the top self-care practices you recommend to help people find their center right now?”  Here’s what I shared:

Get grateful. Voicing what we’re grateful for heightens our mood, floods our body with endorphins, shifts and broadens how we see the world and supports us in remembering what really matters.

Do less. Navigating uncertain times requires more space to breathe, feel, digest and discern. We need time to just be so we can integrate what’s happening around us and recalibrate. Say no; overdoing is depleting.

Go outside. Time in nature–the ultimate antidepressant–positively affects our physical, mental and emotional well-being. It reduces stress, enhances our mood, helps us to “reset,” promotes creativity and problem solving, and supports work/life balance.

Move your body & breathe. Ever heard the phrase, “The issues are in the tissues”? Conscious movement gets us out of our heads and into the present moment. Yoga, qi gong, NIA and walking are particularly fortifying. Try this detoxifying breathing exercise (through your nose, mouth closed):  breathe in for three, hold for three, breathe out for three. Repeat ten times.

Ask for help. Cultivating the ability to ask for and receive support–whether it’s from a coach, therapist, mentor, neighbor, or co-worker–helps you feel more connected, calm and confident when facing tough times. Learning this skill can be life changing!

Nicole inspired us to create Self-Care Comfort Cards (see below) that highlight my top tips.  I’m offering these colorful, grounding 4×6 postcards with my 5 favorite self-care practices for uncertain times for free. I’d be happy to send you a small stack for your workplace, clients, yoga class, school group or book club. Just email info at reneetrudeau dot com letting us know your address and desired quantity (we’re offering packs of 5, 10, 15, or 25).  We just ask that you first pay for postage, then we’ll handle the rest. These are great to post in your office, car, on your refrigerator or anywhere you’ll see these reminders on a regular basis. Enjoy!

Self-care comfort cards for your work, school or community group. Great reminders for ways to quickly find your center.

Sending you all ease and grace in the coming months. Let us know how we can support you!

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR LEARNING THE ART & SCIENCE OF SELF-CARE:

• Would you love to gather each month with like-minded women who desire to make self-care part of their daily lives? Find out more about our 14-year-old global Personal Renewal Group Program and consider joining a group or becoming a RTA-Certified Facilitator and leading groups/retreats for women in your area (we’re extending our $100 off RTA-Certified Facilitator Training special through 4/30/17, plus it includes private coaching with Renee!).
• Not a group person? Download one of my self-care audio classes (only $99 each) and listen to these powerful, personal, resource-packed classes from the comfort of your car, kitchen or office anytime you like! Learn more.
• Craving deep to-the-bones rest and renewal in an empowering, supportive and nurturing environment?  Join me at an upcoming retreat.  Our retreats always sell out, so don’t wait to register (check out our bring a friend special for the Austin, TX May 12 Mother’s Day retreat!)

Join us May 12 in Austin, TX at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center for a one-day self-care retreat.

Subscribe here to Live Inside Out, a weekly blog written by life balance speaker/author and Career Strategists president, Renée Peterson Trudeau. Renee’s work has appeared in The New York Times, Good Housekeeping, Spirituality & Health and more. Thousands of women in ten countries are becoming RTA-Certified Facilitators and leading/joining self-renewal group based on her award-winning curriculum.  She leads workshops/retreats around the globe and is the author of The Mother’s Guide to Self-Renewal and Nurturing the Soul of Your Family: 10 Ways to Reconnect and Find Peace in Everyday Life. She lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and 15-year-old son. More on her background here.