What I'm Reading This Week #34
Hello you sassy beast! Ready for another flip flappin' fantastic weekend? Yes indeedy, Ally Sheedy. It's been a week of working ahead for me as I try to work on ideas for holiday posts. I know, no one is ready for Christmas but spit balling stuff is actually getting me excited for the season. I like to try to give myself the month of December off from writing new posts (except updating weekly happenings) so all I have to do is respond if needed. It lets me take a little mental break during the holidays to try to enjoy what I can then hop back into the new year hopefully rested and ready to roll. We did book our 30th anniversary trip, which is the same one we had to cancel this year and of course got travel insurance. It's just nice to have something to hopefully look forward to and it makes you go "where the heck did 4 1/2 years go?" because it seems like just yesterday we were celebrating our 25th. Do people even celebrate their 30t...
I have a hard time shutting my brain off when I want to sleep sometimes but usually reading a book at night does the trick - though I admit sometimes I end up reading a lot longer than I might want to before it works.
ReplyDeleteI've tried that and it does seem to help a little but then as you know, I wake up in the middle of the night and the hamster puts on some ONJ and gets Physical on the wheel.
DeleteLike the Mr., I like to read in bed before attempting to sleep. It definitely helps to quiet my brain and get me to relax, but the selection of book definitely matters. The book needs to be fiction, engaging, but not too exciting. I also try to set a time limit as to how long I will read, about a half hour, and will include it in my bedtime routine. That way I am still turning off the light at my preferred time.
ReplyDeleteOutside of bedtime two ways that I am able to mentally relax is to take a hot shower and focus only on how the water feels on my body and to sit by a large body of water, focusing on the movement of the water. It helps that I live near the Atlantic Ocean.
I too have struggled to be in the moment in more intimate situations. One thing that has helped me is to focus on what I feel under my hands, the different textures available to me, finding something soft, smooth, calming, which brings me back into the moment. I'll also be honest about what is running through my head, usually something silly or completely random, and we will laugh about it, which helps us reconnect.
So happy you have a nice body of water close by to enjoy! (We have a sea of orange barrels in every direction for about 20 miles) Those are good tips and I will give those a try.
DeleteThis is where the mindfulness meditation helps me
ReplyDeleteI sooo wish I could meditate. Last night I literally apologized 6x praying from my thoughts wandering even when I was talking to Grandma after. LOL I did try again this morning. Something I really need to super focus on.
DeleteI'm about 50/50 on this. When I'm really upset about something it's hard to put it out of my mind completely. But whether it's been a stressful day or a regular okay day, I always, always play a funky solitaire game on my Fire. I do this to help relax, to distract, and to calm down if I'm on overload. I usually have the game music turned off too because sometimes that can be annoying to hear if I'm amped up. Like Browren above, if I'm by water, like a lake up north, all my stress and thoughts go out the window because I'm able to just focus on the sounds of the water and any bird or animal noises nearby, and my breathing becomes more steady and regulated.
ReplyDeleteOn the bad days I will do an Italian lesson and/or pop bubble wrap. When we were on Long Island, it was easy to relax sitting on the beach-- even when I ended up in the water fully clothed I still laughed about it. I need an ocean or lake near me!
Delete