How to Heal Ourselves Through Stressful & Demanding Times

When the world feels like an insecure and scary place which it so often does when we look outside the bubble of our own lives. There is so much going on everywhere that is out of our control and we don't have any ability to do anything about it, it can make us feel helpless, confused, lost and scared.

You can enter a petition or do different things to put your name to the cause of justice and support for the greater good, but it still can feel like; "from where I am right now in the world, I want to do more, I want to help but what I do feels like it doesn't make a difference and why is the world like this?". And then so can come all of the emotional triggers that further promote a sense of hopelessness. 

In my experience what can help us in this spiral net is supporting our nervous system to come back down, and this is always the best place to be for ourselves as much as possible. To be fully embodied in our own body ensures that for the people around us that we are connected with, whom we truly can influence and affect, we are operating from the best most sustainable part of ourselves. 

This is a true concept because in this life you are here for you and to follow your greatest purpose in the best way possible. Show up for yourself because that's why you're here, it's deep work once you start to understand how vital it is. And the better that you can work in on yourself, the better you become for those around you, and the wider world. You have more energy and clarity to give, support and help. 

It is so important to have the tools to do things that can help us to drop back into calmness in our nervous system. This helps the clarity click in faster and if we want to move on something then we know what to do, we know where to start and move forward from this sustainable place.

I feel this has been so active in my life at the moment because I've been in a state of very high stress, and that meant that my decisions have not been very aligned with how I would see them from a clearer space. After coming off these high-stress months I have created as many tiny moments of calmness, serenity, and joy in my life. 

This is a practice that is not only a part of our vital self-care routines, but as we go deeper into learning the importance of the practice we see that it becomes a part of our governing system. Ensuring that when times of high stress and pressure strike which are at most times unavoidable and for those who are deeply affected by the current events in the world, this would be an increasingly demanding time. This is when our self-care tools become vital life rafts through the storms and ensure we can continue to cultivate our most sustainable selves. 

What do tools for sustained self-care look like?

1.Scheduling mini blocks of personal time 

Guard mini blocks of time throughout your day that you can dedicate to your rejuvenation. This could look like face yoga first thing in the morning and ensuring everyone in your household that their demands will be met once you have set this for yourself or a micro rest or nap when home from work and the day before you begin dinner. 

Planning time on days where you can sleep in a little more than usual or just have a cup of tea and look out the window. Doing this can break up the heavy lifting of stressful days that seem never-ending. 

2. Music and sound

Regularly immerse yourself in the soothing sounds and music that can lighten, heal and lift the mood. Harsh music that has too fast a tempo can rattle our nervous systems quickly if we are already in a stressed state. When things are too much for me to think through I will play classical music, or frequency and harmony tones in the background. Specifically, choose music tones that are softening to your system and healing. Small acts like this can dramatically fill up your cup when you have no other avenue to do so. 

3. Nature and Grounding

It can be as simple as looking out the window to connect with a tree or the sky. We can’t always get our feet on the earth's ground but we can take in the nature around us and connect it to its life force for a moment. Creating this habit throughout the day can be very grounding and keep you connected to a state of calm. Infusing our plants with this extra knowledge can create a more potent connection to Mother Earth - it is that simple!

4. Breath and meditation

Breathwork is so important for your vitality and releasing stagnate energy and emotions. Meditation can be a game changer but not all of us have a luxury block of time each day for a fully committed med. Put on meditation as you are travelling to work, or play one of my simple meditations before you begin your face yoga to help draw you into the present moment. 

I will be releasing more breathwork videos over the next few months so keep your eyes out for these. 

5. Body Movement

Did you know that moving your body can be the immediate medicine to assist fight or flight from releasing from your body? When you start to feel stress rising in your body the best thing to do is move your body. If you are in the office this can be simple like walking to the water filter. If you are at home see if you can dance or move your body in rapid ways. Doing this will help release the adrenaline pumping in your body and lessen the effects of stress over time. Remembering to do this more through stressful times will deepen the habit and soon it could become second nature. 

6. Boundaries

We have goals in our lives that we set for ourselves, small and big things that we want to achieve. We have our families, friends, community and all the activities of our children to keep up with. Our days can be so full and go by so fast. I find it useful to schedule ‘me time’ at the moment and set strong boundaries around it as I know this is one of the only ways I can help myself sustain. And if I'm not setting boundaries with what I want to take in and what I want to contribute to, it's like life just takes over. It’s quite low-tech and simple, but it is what is required right now for me. So make sure you do this in your diary or on your calendar. You schedule for everyone else - but what about you? 

7. Understanding the Demands on Ourselves

I think it’s really important to do a personal stocktake of our lives and who we are involved with regularly. You will likely start to see it there are so many more than we realise and we have a lot of responsibilities and demands that we need to keep up. A lot of people's lives are like this, when we start dissecting it and looking at it with a bird's eye view we realise there is so much we carry. Creating a stock take of this can take pressure off and assist in changing the way we perceive our lives and what we are involved in. It may also help you to see where you can release some of this pressure and cultivate more time & energy for yourself. 

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I hope some of these tips can be useful to you as you navigate the stresses of the world.

I come from a place of calm that has it’s own sense of sense, so today I send you love wherever you are in the world from here in Denmark.

Niki x