Do You Prioritize Emotional Self-Care?

Yesterday I felt fabulously nourished and complete. Over the weekend, I attended a fascinating book group discussion, participated in a women’s support circle, had a long delicious dinner with a beloved friend and took a meandering soulful walk with my partner in the woods. All of this “belly time” (face-to-face connection) and heart-nurturing left me feeling buoyant and deeply content.

Emotional self-care (ex: heartfelt communication with friends who let us show up “warts and all,” asking for support from a minister/therapist/coach when needed, journaling and self-reflection) is key to resiliency, lowering stress levels and it has an enormous impact on our overall well-being. Did you know that women release oxytocin, the cuddle hormone, when they gather with other women and have conversations that matter?

The care and feeding of our hearts is just as important as physical self-care and it’s essential to feeling whole and alive. But so often we forget this or push aside time with friends in order to stay slaves to our to-do lists.  

What are you doing on a daily basis to nurture your inner landscape and emotional well-being? Numerous studies report one of the biggest factors that affect our quality of life as we age is how deep and consistent our social interactions are with our friend circle (read about the importance of connection). Alternately, when we’re disconnected from ourselves and others, this can lead to depression, anxiety and worse.

We need each other fully and completely: hearts, minds, bodies and souls. Not just through rapid fire texts, emojis or Facebook likes. This week I challenge you to find ways to connect more deeply and authentically. Try picking up the phone to call a friend you haven’t spoken to in months, setting up a girl’s or guy’s night out or (gasp!) dropping by a friend’s home unexpectedly just for a hug and to say hi. Your heart will thank you for it.

YOUR HOMEWORK: One of my favorite exercises for emotional self-care is my Quickie Journaling Exercise (from my book Nurturing the Soul of Your Family: 10 Ways to Find Peace & Harmony in Everyday Life). Take 5 minutes to answer these three simple questions and record your answers in a notebook. It often helps to write a stream of consciousness—let whatever wants to emerge—and place your hand over the center of your chest while reflecting on each question. How do I feel? What do I need (at this moment, at this life stage)? What do I want (what is my heart’s greatest desire)? Try this exercise every morning for one week. Often, in just five minutes, you are able to unearth a whole world of insight!

Enjoy my blog? Every Tuesday for more than 20 years I’ve been blogging about how to come into balance through the art and science of self-care. Grab your favorite beverage, curl up in a chair and peruse my popular past posts.  And share this resource with someone you care about!

Warmly,

HOW CAN I SUPPORT YOU FIND BALANCE & RESILIENCY? HERE ARE FOUR OPPORTUNITIES:  

• October 25 – 27th ~ Soul Tending: Cultivating Grace, Power and Intuition ~ A Women’s Self-Renewal Retreat at Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health (Berkshire Mountains, Western MA).  From stillness comes discernment. Your soul is calling, are you listening? Join me for connection, replenishing rest, divine natural foods cuisine, song/movement, restorative yoga and more. Packages start at just $635 for this soul-nurturing weekend. Learn more and register.
• *NEW OFFERING!* Secrets to Facilitating Life-Changing Women’s Groups/Retreats in Uncertain Times ~ the course. Are you passionate about empowering other women in your area? Would you love to lead women’s groups/retreats?  Connection = medicine. Created by Renee, this beautiful, self-paced video course–based on our wildly popular, now retired 18-year-old Facilitator Training Program–offers everything you need to start facilitating women’s circles/retreats. Download today; available 24/7. Only $195 for a limited time. Learn more.
• Wild Souls Nature Adventures (based in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western NC): authentic movement classes, community song circles, full moon hikes, meditation workshops, women’s circles & more. New offerings listed each week; have me design a custom experience for your team/friends. Join us Sunday, July 28th for our next Wild Souls Authentic Movement Class near Asheville, NC (No class July 21st)  Learn more.
• JOB OPENING: Women’s Empowerment Communications Internship! Know a savvy, professional junior or senior communications student? We have a wonderful, rare opportunity (virtual or in-person) just outside of Asheville, NC. Learn more: Women’s Empowerment Fall 2024 Communications Internship.

Subscribe here to Live Inside Out, a weekly blog written by life balance coach/author/speaker and catalyst Renée Peterson Trudeau. Passionate about helping men and women find balance through the art/science of self-care, Renee has been facilitating high-impact, interactive workshops and women’s retreats for Fortune 500 companies, national nonprofits/conferences and organizations/teams worldwide for 25 years. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Fast Company, Good Housekeeping, Yoga Journal, AARP Magazine, Spirituality & Health and more. She and her team have certified more than 450 facilitators in 10 countries around the globe to lead self-renewal groups/retreats based on her pioneering self-care curriculum. She’s the author of two books on life balance including the award-winning The Mother’s Guide to Self-Renewal: How to Reclaim, Rejuvenate and Re-Balance Your Life. She and her husband live in Western North Carolina and their son lives in New York City; her latest venture is Wild Souls Nature Adventures. More on Renee here.