“Adversity doesn’t build character, it reveals it.” Let’s use this time to build ourselves up.
Strange times we are living through. Tough for many. What’s it revealing for you? How have things been unfolding in the last week?
For many of us, since we can’t go OUT, it’s a wonderful opportunity to go within. It’s a great time to do some of the things that we’ve been meaning to do but that have been on the back burner. We have a great opportunity to restructure how we spend our days and what habits and rituals we can implement that will lay the foundation for everything that will come post-Corona. It’s an opportunity to recalibrate and to focus on some daily fundamentals of health and wellness and to also do a deep dive into personal meaning and purpose. To review our values, discover our “why”, think about what we can and can’t control, get into a mindfulness practice, prioritize sleep, etc.
We often use the Wellness Wheel each week to plan our goals, create a to-do list to prioritize and then put it on a calendar. This is what a lot of our coaching and accountability partnerships have been based on. Now, we have the opportunity to re-orient to this wheel but more importantly, to our world. For the next few weeks we can use the wheel as a tool to look more within. We have a wonderful opportunity to slow down, to take a step back and to rebuild some of the foundational elements that we (and I mean me, and all of us) can push aside as we get busy with the outside world.
Over the next several weeks, and months (who knows how long this is going to last), let’s work together to create some #quarantinegoals. What are some things in each domain that you can focus on now? Are there things that have been on the back burner that you can now work on directly? We’ll be walking through some of this with you over the coming weeks. We’ll have new worksheets to support you in exploring yourself more and really building up who you are from within so when you do step back out into the world you will feel more grounded, healthier, more inspired and more prepared than you ever have felt.
I’ve been meaning to explore Insight Timer more, for years. Last night I listened to a guided rain meditation as I went to sleep for 15 minutes. I’m re-prioritizing getting 8 hours of sleep. This morning I woke up and did a guided loving kindness meditation. I just laid there being grateful for what I do have, filling my heart center up, breathing deeply (reducing stress hormones), and thinking about others’ wellbeing for 10 minutes. Stepping out of bed well rested and extremely grateful.
Some of my goals in these times are to connect by phone and video with some people who I appreciate and love but have lost touch with. Maybe go through your phone and find 4 or 5 people who you’d like to reach back out to and say “hi”. I’ve been doing this over the weekend and have seen people on video who I haven’t seen for years. Found out an old friend is having a baby girl in October. Am planning a trip to see an old roommate and his wife in Oregon on the other side of all of this. Have been talking to family more, almost daily.
I’ve been prioritizing doing my physical therapy daily. I’ve been doing an online stretching/yoga class, have been doing body weight exercises at home and have been getting out daily for a “socially distanced” beach walk. In the coming days we may walk around your wheel with you and see what are some goals and things you can do to make your inner world richer and more fulfilling.
Another think I’ve been doing over the last few days is studying Functional Medicine. Functional Medicine practices are really the name for some of the things I’ve mentioned above. The habits that functional medicine suggests are the healthy activities of daily living that can seem so simple and obvious that we don’t take them seriously and can often overlook them.
Here are some things that I invite you to think about and explore in the coming week. What do you think about playing around with incorporating some of these into your daily life and see how the positively impact your world? We are all an experiment of one, and what a great time to see what these can add to our lives. I’m not going to go into these in depth here. You can explore more about these and choose what makes sense to incorporate into your days. You can also talk to your coach about ideas and areas to explore within each pillar in the coming days and weeks. You can also set some goals in each category and get started on the greatest experiment you have done to date – which is exploring what works best in each category when you stick to a goal and follow through and see what the experience and outcomes are. And adjust accordingly from there. I hope you have fun with this and take this time to allow yourself to be even more fully you.
The Five Pillars of Inspired Health
- Nutrition
- Sleep
- Movement
- Community
- Stress Management
In these times, work to keep a daily sleep and waking schedule even if you aren’t going to or doing any work. Continue to get up, meditate, eat, exercise, drink coffee, shower, get dressed, etc. Do your morning and daily rituals and try to put together a schedule for yourself that might include exercise, talking or videoing with friends and family, setting aside an hour or two to read or to study something new (there are many free courses on Coursera and other places). Having a structure to relate to will help anchor you to something so you can both best utilize this time to continue to learn, get health and grow. It will also support your mental and emotional health as we find ourselves with more free time than we are used to. Give it a try and see what you find.