We’ll tell you what practice will replace a visit to a psychologist and help you get your life in order.
No matter how hackneyed this attitude is, the modern working woman does not have time to properly take care of her mental health. Visiting a psychologist, keeping a diary, and meditating are very useful things, but few can do them every day. But there is a technique that is sure to suit businesswomen, mothers, and simply busy women – and it is “talking to a pillow”.
The idea is that you communicate with yourself twice a day about important topics. The first time is when you wake up, and the second time is when you fall asleep. The conversation can be out loud if you sleep alone, or silently if another person goes to bed next to you. And it’s not about trust in relationships — it’s just that when we’re alone with ourselves, we’re more open than we are even in front of close people.
So, the main point of the exercise is to set plans in the morning and to finish the day in the evening. In addition, both in the morning and in the evening, you tell yourself positive and life-affirming attitudes that will help turn your life in the direction you want.
“Pillow Talk” – Morning Practice
- Immediately after waking up, do not get out of bed and take two minutes. Realize what mood you are in now and what energy (hate, love, kindness, gratitude, envy, etc.) is filling you now.
- Say the following mantra out loud or silently to yourself: “ I choose to be myself and give myself as much attention as possible in this moment. I accept myself as I am. I accept any emotions I experience as they are. ”
- Next, we move on to positive attitudes. As you know, if you tell your brain, “I don’t have much money,” or “I’m unlucky in love,” it perceives this as a given, not as motivation. Therefore, you need to speak in an affirmative form: “ I am (beautiful, smart, charming and attractive),” “ I can (study, work well, cook a delicious breakfast, give positive emotions to my children),” “ I have (close friends, family, children, material goods, work),” “ I love (myself, my loved ones, my work, the sun, walking in the park).” These thoughts with a “plus” sign set us up to notice what we have, and not lament what we don’t have yet.
- Accept your difficulties by saying the phrase: “Even though… is happening in my life, I believe that I can handle this .” These words help you recognize the problem that needs to be solved, but do not immerse you in negativity.
- If you are worried about the future or the past, the exercise “just today” will help. Promise yourself that only today you will worry about the present, and spend this day focusing only on real life. And so every day, tell yourself that tomorrow you will think about this unpleasant situation from the past, and in the morning again deceive your brain.
- And lastly, for the morning, come up with your working mantra that will comfort you throughout the day. For example, “Everything will be fine”, “I trust life and myself”, “I have people who will support me if I make a mistake”. These should be words that personally penetrate your heart and can sober you up and get you out of the emotional bottom
“Pillow Talk” – Evening Practice
- When all the night rituals are completed and you are completely ready for sleep, turn off the light and lay your head on the pillow. Take two minutes to do your evening practice and finish your day. First, think about what energy and what mood filled the past 24 hours.
- Next, think about something good that happened in the last 24 hours and praise yourself for it. It doesn’t have to be something like “I flew into space,” because sometimes not getting mad at your child when he’s taking a long time to get ready for school is already a good thing.
- Acknowledge your failures from the past day and think about how you could avoid them in the future.
- Remind yourself that tomorrow is a new day, which means you have a chance to start over without making the same mistakes you made today.
- And finally, a gratitude ritual. Think of the three main things you are grateful for today and fall asleep on that good note.
1. Get plenty of sleep
Our body is a machine. A beautiful and incredibly complex system that needs care and rest. When you leave work, you turn off your computer every day, and your body and mind need about the same. Research shows that good sleep helps the brain get rid of toxins that accumulate during the day, which is why seven to eight hours of proper rest are incredibly important for mental and physical health. Your goal is to gradually increase your daily sleep duration to this level. 30 minutes more rest each day – it’s simple, right?
2. Think about what and how you eat
Making your eating mindful takes practice. This is especially true for those who are used to snacking on the run, while simultaneously typing a response to another email and being distracted by phone calls every minute. The practice of mindful eating helps you understand what you eat and what benefits it brings to your body. A healthy relationship with food replaces simply satisfying hunger. Research that this approach to nutrition significantly improves mood, reduces stress levels, helps develop healthy eating habits and even gets rid of excess weight.
3. Cut out caffeine
Caffeine is a stimulant that irritates your already overwrought nervous system. When you’re anxious, stressed, or generally on the verge of hysteria, another cup of coffee may only give you a short-lived pick-me-up. Instead, try other, gentler ways to perk up and recharge your batteries: exercise or meditation . If mornings without coffee are no fun for you, take your relationship with the drink to a different level and make it as conscious as possible. Savor the aroma and enjoy the taste of the drink as you sip it from your favorite mug. Over time, this ritual may prove to be much more important than the coffee itself.
4. Start moving and don’t stop
Not only is movement a powerful mood-boosting and stress-reducing tool, but it’s also a proven way to maintain excellent memory and overall thinking skills.
You can combat growing tension with physical activity: every minute spent on yoga, jogging, or cycling becomes a contribution to the fight against stress.
A simple morning workout sets the necessary pace for the entire day and helps you focus on important tasks. Needless to say, successful people prefer to exercise in the morning. Start with at least 10 minutes of moderate physical activity per day and gradually increase its duration to the recommended half an hour.
5. Remember: the best rest is silence
Yes, yes, yes, not a single article about changing your life is complete without mentioning meditation. Well, what can you do if it works? About 80% of visits to doctors are somehow related to the consequences of stress, imagine what a monstrous waste of time and money? What’s even more amazing is that we can reduce all these expenses with the help of… that’s right, meditation. These practices help cope with stress, strengthen the immune system, improve sleep, and feel truly happy. Just five minutes of such relaxation will make the day much more joyful. Another bonus: people who regularly meditate think rationally and experience less anxiety when life throws up new surprises.
6. Take care of your skin
It’s simple: happy skin means happy you. Of course, consolidating this habit is no different from others, it also takes time. The well-known three-week rule is not so important here – consistency, regularity, and understanding why you are doing it are much more useful than crossing out days on the calendar. The notorious concealer will hide traces of fatigue in no time, but real changes in the condition of the skin always come from within, slowly but surely. Choose something that will not only improve your complexion but will also bring real benefits to the body, be it cosmetics or food. Just repeat all the necessary procedures in the morning and evening – after a while, you will notice that your skin glows with health and your mood is no longer so gloomy. It’s trite, but humanity has not yet come up with anything better.
7. Feed your soul, not your ego
It’s simple: do what makes you happy. Not all of our achievements fill our souls with joy. Regular overtime may be useful, but in the end it leads to the depletion of the body’s far from endless reserves. The benefits of such behavior are less than those of regular relaxation. Finally buy the shoes you’ve been wanting for a long time, treat yourself to ice cream during your lunch break, and spend the weekend watching old movies. All – well, most – of your actions should have one single reason: they bring you joy. You do it not because it’s another item on the to-do list. Joy. You. Period.
8. Trust your intuition
The dubious expression “I feel it in my gut” is not a metaphor at all. Before making important decisions, listen to your feelings: the body often tells us what we need before we even realize it. Take a break if you are tired. Go somewhere if your soul asks for a change. In short, when something goes wrong, first of all, ask yourself about the reasons. If you are not an intuitive person, it will take some time to learn to listen to your inner voice. Just take a break from all your worries, take a break, and honestly answer what you feel now. Chances are good that you know perfectly well what you want. You just need to stop for a while and listen to yourself.
9. Break the usual order of things
Make it a goal to try something completely new at least once a week. Or, if you have plenty of enthusiasm, once a day. You don’t have to take on something big right away – just take a different route to work. Even something as small as this is an unusual experience. It helps open your mind to new ways of thinking and perceiving, which in turn will make you at least a little happier.
10. Create a comfortable environment for yourself
The first step in creating healthy relationships in every sense is to be responsible about what and who you fill your life with. Yes, the prospect of turning toxic relationships into joyful and comfortable ones can be daunting at first, especially when it comes to friendships, family, food, work, or yourself. However, it is important.
Analyze all your connections and notice how they contribute to your life and well-being.
Those who are responsible for their surroundings are often more confident in their decision-making.
11. Learn new things
The process of acquiring new knowledge makes us happy; that’s a fact. It also helps to extend our lives and make them more interesting and fulfilling, and also gets rid of unnecessary prejudices. If you want to start small, learn to knit, for example. The Internet is full of training videos, so you can master this simple task without even getting out of bed. If you are attracted to big goals, go to a three-month web design course. Whatever you decide to do, your brain will be deeply grateful to you anyway.
12. Start keeping a journal
Relieving stress, developing creativity, boosting self-confidence, and inspiring you to achieve your goals is a simple activity, but it has so many benefits . If it’s difficult, don’t commit to writing every day right away. It’s the process of writing that’s important, not how many times you do it, so you can start with a couple of sessions a week. Set a timer, give yourself a simple topic like “What I’m looking forward to today,” and write whatever comes to mind. Trust me, you’ll eventually look forward to these sessions.
Have you tried these methods or does something else help you? Share your tips in the comments.