Extreme Self-Care

I saw this newletter column by life coach Cheryl Richardson a few weeks ago, and my Ya Ya sisters and I decided to create extreme self-care lists for ourselves.  In hindsight, we probably more often went after the things that bring pleasure to our lives maybe more than the extreme things that mean setting difficult boundaries against that which drains us (like turning all people who drain us out of our lives...).  Not that there's a thing wrong with this.  It was enlightening to create the lists at all and I want to keep adding to mine.

I would looooooove to see what might be on the lists each of you might create!  As Romanlily and Fab Slice read our lists to each other last night, I think we were inspired by possibilities we hadn't considered (I know I was). 

Here are some of the things I do that bring pleasure to my life:

 

·         Anything that adds whimsy to my life. 

·         Wearing or surrounding myself with bright colors

·         Playing with color.  I remember the JOY of food coloring on paper towels as a child.

·         Watching the Planet Earth series on DVD

·         Watching a favorite and well-known movie while doing something else – puzzle, project, folding clothes…

·         Jigsaw puzzles! (!!!) <--- the number of exclamation points tells me I need to do these more often. 

·         Snatch (game) with Kevin, Oh Hell with CQ

·         Shopping for and cooking a bunch of veggies to eat at once.

·         A really nice glass of wine

·         Hazelnuts and chocolate

·         Blogging

·         Buying ink pens (I can't explain the joy of the pen aisle at Office Depot)

·         Retreat weekend  or week – a house by myself with a view, lots of books, food, and a pair of bird-watching binoculars

·         Dance weekends, folk festivals (especially the one coming up in a few days!  LEAF)

·         Turning off the phone, computer, outside contact mechanisms

·         Reading a well-written murder mystery, or other fantasy storylines (Harry Potter!)

·         Going to bed early with a good book, especially a favorite book I’ve read many times. 

·         Lying in bed during a summer thunderstorm… safe, warm, protected, in awe of nature

·         Getting a genuine belly-laugh out of Kevin or Kylin.

·         Purging / organizing / making space or order

·         Birdsong – getting present by noticing it’s sweetness around my home

·         Buying a new journal

·         Camping away from people (off the beaten path and marked campsites)

·         Climbing Stone Mountain with my iPod or a friend.  Sitting quietly at the top (out of breath). 

·         Getting out of the city

·         Room service, flowers, glass of wine, beautiful view, and someone’s company (even my own) that I truly enjoy.

·         Setting weekly goals with Tammie

·         Taking a day or half a day off work for me.

·         Going to a movie by myself, or finding new podcasts to download

·         Scented candles

·         Scented lotion (just the right scents) 

·         Buy flowers for myself

·         Sudoku

·         Make lists of things I appreciate or want to do or that are bothering me or or or… I love lists.

·         Nap, especially when I can really do it without guilt.

·         Hot bath with a book

·         Get a massage or a pedicure or a manicure – anything that involves touch.

·         Garden

·         Tour someone else’s garden

·         Walk in the Clayton County Wetlands

·         Swim in Pine Lake

·         Download new music

·         Drink something with caffeine (which is detrimental, so I don’t know if that’s really an extreme self-care candidate).

·         Find new podcasts to explore

·         Find someone to hear me out when I know I’m sounding crazy

·         A simple art project that has a goal – assembling pictures of something I want or of things that evoke a particular feeling,

·         Time with my Ya-Ya’s, CQ, or therapy group, especially when there’s laughter.