Welcome autumn! Self-care ideas for the fall season
Summer ended and autumn season is here.
I do like autumn with all it’s colors, with it’s sunny yet frisky mornings, with it’s smells and all its coziness. Autumn is a season of change, nature changes and so are we. Days are shorter, nights are longer and nature prepares for winter. For some of us autumn is a very busy time. Work is getting busier, children go back to school, our agendas get packed and there’s simply too many priorities to juggle. It’s funny how everything becomes very intense during a time when we are supposed to slow down. With so many things to do and get done, it’s easy to deprioritize ourselves and our own selfcare. Selfcare is all about finding a balance, caring for our bodies and our souls. It’s about getting cozy and about nurturing our spirit.
Today I’m sharing with you 5 selfcare ideas to enjoy and celebrate autumn.
Enjoy autumn fruit and vegetables
Take a walk to the local market, or the local supermarket and buy fruit and veggies that are in season. Eating with season, not just has many health benefits and supports a healthy life style, but it connects you to Mother Earth, and when you are more connected to the world around you, you are more connected to yourself. Seasonal fruit and vegetables also contain more nutrients, antioxidants and offer to your body the vitamins and minerals it needs during this particular time of the year. In autumn it is very important to consume a good quantity of vitamin C, which will support the immune system. Parsnips, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli are loaded with vitamin C and antioxidants which will boost our immune system. Pumpkin is just one of the wonders that autumn has to offer. Is rich in vitamins (C and E) as well as minerals (Zinc), but is also a good source of tryptophan. Why is this so amazing? Because tryptophan is an essential amino-acid which our body uses to produce serotonin and melatonin, the happiness hormones. In another words…, yes, pumpkin rules!
Take a morning walk and observe the changes in nature
When you wake up, going for a walk might not be a priority, especially if it’s cold outside (and autumn mornings can e really frisky sometimes). Starting your day with a walk can have a number of health benefits. Whether you plan a short walk around the block, or is simply part of your commute to work, a morning walk can give you the energy you need throughout the day. When you make morning walks part of your daily routine, on a long term, it can improve your mood and helps you sleep better at night. Autumn days can get cold, but nature is so beautiful at this time of the year. Don’t ignore the beauty around you, observe it. Let sunshine caress your face, admire how leaves are changing, listen to the sounds around you. Observing what is happening around you, keeps you in the present moment, it keeps you connected to yourself. Believe it or not, but when you are more connected to yourself, it’s easier to connected with others, you’ll enjoy more self-confidence, and hopefully you’ll believe more in yourself. So, are you sure you want to skip that morning walk?
Take a moment to enjoy a warm beverage
But you do that all the time, right? But how many times did you take 10 full minutes to yourself, to sit in silence and actually enjoy a warm drink while it’s still warm? The number of times I prepared my coffee in the morning and by the time I finished it was completely cold. And this is because I get interrupted all the time. This is not so much about the drink, this is about taking a moment during the day to focus on yourself and on the now. Plan for those minutes during the day to enjoy a warm drink and sit quietly.
Declutter, Declutter, Declutter
Yes, I know, maybe not a favorite activity to do and perhaps you’re wondering how is this selfcare? It might not sound exciting, but in the long run is a very effective way to make you feel better. Maybe not something you’d consider spending your free time doing ( I know it takes me a while to motivate myself), but creating a clutter free environment can actually be an amazing form of selfcare. When you think of clutter, perhaps you imagine objects full of dust that you haven’t touched in a while, or stuff that have been forgotten in your drawers for years. Clutter can have different forms: from an object, to a thought, a feeling or a relationship. Beyond its material significance, I see clutter as everything that we don’t love or no longer serves us. When you motivate yourself to declutter, just ask yourself:” What is it that no longer serves me?”. Declutter is about letting go and make space for new: new clothes, new ideas, new relationships, new beginnings 😊
Try Morning Pages
First of all what is “Morning Pages”? Morning pages is a technique described by Julia Cameron in her book The Artist’s Way . There is no right or wrong way to do morning pages, you just write as you wake up everything that comes to your mind. It doesn’t have to be beautiful, well written or make sense. Remember is just you and your thoughts. When I first heard about this method, the first thing that came to my mind was: “there is no way I’m gonna find time to write anything down as I wake up”. My mornings are busy, very busy …preparing kids for school, preparing myself to go to work, home-work commute….I couldn’t see how it could work. But I was wrong. I might not fill three pages, but oh, how it helps to get everything out first thing in the morning.
How did Morning Pages actually help me? Imagine morning pages as being a brain dump, just like that. When you wake up in the morning there’s a ton of thoughts and ideas that cross your mind. Morning pages help me focus, prioritize and clear my mind. It also helps quieting my inner critic (I know, I know 😊) and help me feel less anxious. Whatever fears I have, I put all those emotions in writing and I realize is not so bad.
Whatever you like from this list, whatever resonates with you, try and make it a habit and always remember how special you are.
Enjoy autumn!