When Relaxing isn't Working for You
You’ve probably all heard the advice to practice healthy self-care and relaxation. Take a bath, get a massage, watch TV…we've heard it all before. What you may not have heard as much about is the balance of relaxing and recharging. Sometimes an activity can be one in the same, checking off both boxes and leave us feeling refreshed. Sometimes though, we can walk away from a relaxing activity feeling the same overwhelm and drain we went into it with.
When it comes to RECHARGING activities, we need to think a little deeper. We can look inward to what part of us feels off-balance and then choose an activity that nurtures that specific part. It helps to focus on what fills you up, what brings you a feeling of inner-peace, and what aligns with your values. Learning to differentiate these things and tune into both relaxing and recharging is a vital part of healthy self-care.
WHAT KINDS OF ACTIVITIES FEEL RECHARGING FOR YOU? The ideas below are to help you get started but are not one-size fits all. Some days these ideas may feel recharging and help you feel whole. Other days these may like “too much” or not quite the right match for what you’re needing. Day to day, you can choose what works best for you!
Mind
When my mind needs recharging, it feels frazzled and scattered. You may notice that it's hard to focus on something, or tangents and side projects keep popping up. Maybe you feel like your brain can't turn off even if you want it to. While there could be some underlying mental health things there to talk with a therapist about, a lot of it can also be a normal part of living in the sometimes chaotic world that we do!
Ideas for recharging the mind:
Journal your thoughts
Organize a space at home
Brainstorm ideas for something on your mind
Write out a to-do list & complete anything that takes 5 mins or less
Plan out your week in your planner
Body
Sometimes imbalance in our bodies can be easier to notice than imbalance in one of these other areas. We start to feel the achiness in our back from sitting too much, or our stomach and GI system go a little hay-wire after eating take-out more nights that we're used to. If it doesn't feel as easy to notice for you, consider a proactive approach by picking 1 thing to focus on each week.
Ideas for recharging the body:
Walk or jog 1 lap in your neighborhood
Meal prep something that will last for a few days
Cook a homemade meal that feels nostalgic
Try light stretching or chair yoga
Take a warm shower
Soul
In this sense, your soul is the part of you that experiences meaning, purpose, and fulfillment. It's that part that feels inner peace, or inner turmoil sometimes. It's the part of us that can feel "whole" even when our to-do list is massive and we've been sitting too long. Tuning into things that recharge this part of you often means tuning into your values. This could be spending time with family or friends, but it could also be prioritizing quiet time (that's why connections is separate and described next). It could be participating in something that brings you joy, or taking time with your spiritual side.
Ideas for recharging the soul:
Snuggle a pet
Be in nature
Read something heartfelt or uplifting
Volunteer with something that feels meaningful to you
Do something that is guaranteed to make you laugh
Connections
I know when you hear "mind, body, soul" that you usually don't hear about connections too. I find this helpful to pull out on it's own because it focuses on our connectedness to others, our feeling of support and community. Sometimes we can get so "in the zone" with work or our to-do list that we need to recharge our interpersonal side. We need to feel bonded with our people.
Ideas for recharging connections:
Call a friend
Send an encouraging text
Create a thoughtful gift for someone
Spend time with a loved one
Send snail mail to someone not expecting it
What does recharging look like for you?
What kinds of things restore your sense of peace in your mind, body, soul, and connections?
