Taking Care of Yourself First
Posted by Sharon Jacobson on Sunday, December 11, 2011
Under: Holidays
I had to leave this blog alone for a bit because I found myself being spread a bit thin. I forgot for a time that the rule is. Take care of yourself first so that you have the strength to take care of others.
When you have a family that you love and you want to make every Christmas a special memory, it is easy to forget your own needs. You don't even have to be mobility impaired to be affected by the "Holiday Exhaustion." Impaired people just get a little more worn out, faster. It is important to start each day with realistic expectations. If you know that baking one batch of cookies is going to make you tired, don't plan to spend the whole day baking, come what may; just to get the job done. Spread the baking out over a couple of days and enlist help. Kids can be a wonderful help, (perhaps a little messy but still good) they can fetch and carry, older children can measure and mix under your watchful eye and they love being a part of it all. Try not to spend hours surfing the net for presents, and when you do, try to not let yourself get sidetracked with the related website links because that can add hours of unnecessary web time.
I understand that some people have trouble sleeping around this time of year because I am one of the club. The cold makes pain worse, then you get to thinking about how little time there is to make and do and pretty soon the sun is coming up and you haven't gotten much more then a kind of fitful doze all night. It's hard. I love to meditate, it doesn't help me sleep but it does refresh the inner me and that is a big deal. Everyone is capable of meditation, the key is to release all worries and problems. This is the time when you are not allowed to think about them at all. Some people study meditation and have mantras, I prefer to use visualization, my favorites are to revisit in my mind, the most peaceful and beautiful places that I have been in the past. The next thing that I am going to touch on real quick, is rest. This is where I have been lacking. I know that I should take a rest on the afternoons after a long night... But the days are so dang short that I've been feeling like I'm behind on everything. Admittedly I am behind and Christmas will still come and be over with in one day. I will get through this and so will you.
Whats for Dinner? Chilli with Cheese and crackers: Beans are cheap and good proteins.
When you have a family that you love and you want to make every Christmas a special memory, it is easy to forget your own needs. You don't even have to be mobility impaired to be affected by the "Holiday Exhaustion." Impaired people just get a little more worn out, faster. It is important to start each day with realistic expectations. If you know that baking one batch of cookies is going to make you tired, don't plan to spend the whole day baking, come what may; just to get the job done. Spread the baking out over a couple of days and enlist help. Kids can be a wonderful help, (perhaps a little messy but still good) they can fetch and carry, older children can measure and mix under your watchful eye and they love being a part of it all. Try not to spend hours surfing the net for presents, and when you do, try to not let yourself get sidetracked with the related website links because that can add hours of unnecessary web time.
I understand that some people have trouble sleeping around this time of year because I am one of the club. The cold makes pain worse, then you get to thinking about how little time there is to make and do and pretty soon the sun is coming up and you haven't gotten much more then a kind of fitful doze all night. It's hard. I love to meditate, it doesn't help me sleep but it does refresh the inner me and that is a big deal. Everyone is capable of meditation, the key is to release all worries and problems. This is the time when you are not allowed to think about them at all. Some people study meditation and have mantras, I prefer to use visualization, my favorites are to revisit in my mind, the most peaceful and beautiful places that I have been in the past. The next thing that I am going to touch on real quick, is rest. This is where I have been lacking. I know that I should take a rest on the afternoons after a long night... But the days are so dang short that I've been feeling like I'm behind on everything. Admittedly I am behind and Christmas will still come and be over with in one day. I will get through this and so will you.
Whats for Dinner? Chilli with Cheese and crackers: Beans are cheap and good proteins.
In : Holidays