These are a few of my favorite things. August Edition

One of my passions is self-care. Deeping my practice, I am focusing on my holistic self-care, which means caring for myself in physical, spiritual, emotional, and relational ways. Here are reflections on my top five favorite practices and items that are bringing me joy and gratitude this month. 

BirdTalker – If you live in Nashville then you have a friend or two in a band. Here are some of my friends playing a song that has been on repeat at my house. 

Plan to Eat – Meal planning is one of my personal goals for this year. In trying to save money and time at the grocery store, I purchased a subscription to PlanToEat.com.  Let's be real. This saves me from either going to the grocery store multiple times a week or driving through Chick-fil-a more than any person should. They offer a one-month free trial, but you have to add your recipes into your account. In the long run, I am hopeful that this will save me time, money, AND calories. (This is not an advertisement, but something I have found personally useful.) 

No-Bake Energy Bites  – These are game changers. Game changers.  They are great for breakfast, snacks, and dessert. Since I started meal planning, I added these to my rotation. Make them once and eat them throughout the week. They are great to have on hand for the mornings when you are running late. Compared to cereal, they are also much easier and safer to eat during your morning commute. Check out the recipe at Redefined Mom. 

Rising Strong – Brené Brown is one of my favorite authors and speakers. Her work influences my clinical work and my personal life. Last weekend, I was able to attend her book launch, hear her speak, and meet her while she was on tour in Nashville. It was an incredible experience and I have already begun reading her latest book, Rising Strong. Brown shares, "when we deny our stories, they define us. When we own our stories, we get to write the ending." 

Fitbit Flex – Last year, I was given a Fitbit and I wore it for a full day. This year, I reviewed my practice of self-care and one of my goals was to increase physical activity. Using my Fitbit as a tool to challenge me as well as track my level of activity has become a part of my daily self-care routine.  Fitbit tip: For the first week, begin every day asking "how can I do more steps than yesterday?" Then try to find life-giving ways to reach 10,000 steps a day. 

What are some of your favorite things in your life? What practices or items are bringing you joy? Do you have any highlights from August? 

Self-Care Saturday: The One Thing You Need

Self-care is giving you the grace to take care of you. Give yourself the grace to make space and time to meet your needs or to allow others to help meet your needs. This week we practice one self-care experiment because one thing is better is nothing.

Today You Will

Look at your life. What is the one thing you want to do today? What is the one thing you need to do today? Trust your intuition, chances are you know what your one thing needs to be. Maybe it is something easy like getting your hair cut or something hard like making that tough phone call. What is the one action step you need to make today take care of yourself? Write it down, post it somewhere and then do it. "Today I will________." Give yourself the grace to allow one action to be enough. 

Click here for your free "Today I will" printable.

If your one thing is finding a Nashville therapist, feel free to call Jessica at (615) 979-4167 for a free 15-minute phone consultation. I’m happy to hear about what is happening and help direct you the right person for you.

Self-Care Saturday: Making Time for Deep Connections

Making time for self-care involves cultivating a life of deep connections. These meaningful relationships help us navigate the storms of life, and they do not happen overnight. We need to make time and space for these deep connections to happen, even though we may have to take a risk and become vulnerable. Here are two ideas about how to practice self-care, but also to make time for deep connections.

Schedule Your Next Vacation

I love to travel. Traveling gives me space where I can breathe deeply and gain perspective on what matters most. One of my favorite ways to travel is with friends and family. When we head out on vacation together we are given a unique opportunity to reconnect and deepen our relationship. Currently, I am on vacation with my husband celebrating our anniversary. This annual beach trip is a great time for us to process the previous year and dream of what we want the next year to look like. We love the space we have on this trip to have unique conversations about out life together. I would recommend you trying the same on your next trip with loved ones. If you are looking for some help on what conversations to have with your partner or your children, then look no further. There’s an app for that.

Practice Asking for Help & Receiving Help

One surprising form of self-care is to ask for help and then receive help. This is hard for many of us. Asking for something feels risky. Saying “I cannot do it all by myself” makes us become vulnerable. We don't want to seem needy. We don’t want our friend to disappoint by not helping out. However, one of the best ways we can cultivate deeper connections is to open ourselves to our friends and ask for help. When you do you lower the walls between you and them and surprising, meaningful things can happen. Your relationship has the potential to grow and stretch in new ways. So go ahead and ask. I’m guessing they already knew you needed help in the first place!

If reaching out and asking a professional in Nashville for counseling is what is next for you, then call for a free 15-minute phone consultation with Jessica.