How to establish a daily wellness routine

If you are anything like me you enjoy helping others. You are always on the look out for an opportunity to lend advice or assist in some way. This is a great quality to have but... there is a reason the flight attendant tells you to put your oxygen mask on first in an emergency. We have to remember that we have nothing to give if our cup is empty. We should set up a daily wellness routine to make sure that we always feel our best, preform our best, and are able to share with others when they need us.

Everyone is different, my daily wellness routine will not look like yours. In this post I will provide a general guideline, with details about each section, and give advice about setting up your routine. If you would like assistance setting up a daily wellness routine please e-mail me!

Your daily routine should be comprised of the following:
Physical needs: Hygiene, diet, exercise, and sleep.
Mental/emotional needs: Mood stabilization, focus, and thought patterns.
Spiritual/emotional needs: self-love (meditation, therapy, soul searching, creative therapy, etc), gratitude, and rest (not sleep).

Physical Needs:

• Hygiene: Taking care of our hygiene is very important. This means bathing (body and hair), oral hygiene, wearing clean clothes (I always wear jeans twice and some over shirts but if they get dirty the first time wash them), and preventative such as deodorant. When we take the time to make sure we are starting with a clean slate we are subconsciously telling ourselves that we are worth the time it takes to do these things. We are also able to notice any new conditions that may arise before they get out of control. The body is the temple because that is where our soul resides. Keep that temple neat and clean! 
• Diet: No-I am not saying you should go on a diet but you should be intentional about what you are eating. Do you eat junk because you don't have time to prepare food? There are so many affordable/time saving ways to make sure the food you eat is nourishing. For example; If you are too busy to cook every night pick a few nights each week. When you cook make three times more than you need and freeze the two portions you didn't eat. The next time you think I don't have time to cook just look in the freezer! 
• Exercise: Stretch before exercising, stretch during your breaks at work, stretch when you wake up and before you go to bed. If you are out of the swing of exercising (like me due to knee injury) make a schedule that helps you prevent burn out. Start small with activities you enjoy such as swimming, biking, playing bad-mitten or taking walks. Find an accountability partner who is willing to work towards your exercise goals together. If you are an avid exerciser already keep doing it but make sure to take time to nourish your body. Again, stretch. Do yoga if possible. There are thousands of free yoga videos on YouTube for all levels of yoga. From beginner yoga that you can do in the bed to expert yoga-pilates combo's you do not have to have a gym membership. I am SO looking forward to being able to do yoga again. The feeling I have when my muscles are in tune with my body is amazing. 
• Sleep: We should spend around a third of our day sleeping. Do you? Most nights I get 7.5 hours. However I have to work at making sure those are quality hours of sleep versus tossing and turning for 7.5 hours. Prep your room by running a diffuser with Lavender and Peppermint or the restful blend of essential oils 5-10 minutes before bed time. Plug the phone into the charger and forget about it. Try to avoid caffeine before bed. Personally if I have caffeine after 5 PM I have a hard time getting to sleep. Figure out whether you sleep better in a warm or cool environment and adjust ahead of time. Use a sound machine or download 8 hrs of nature/rain/ocean sounds and play while you are sleeping to block out noisy neighbors or street noise. Take the time to determine your needs for your best nights sleep and make it a habit to set the tone for yourself

Mental/emotional needs:

• Mood stabilization: Start your day off right by adding grounding blend or lemon essential oil to the bottom of your feet or on the back of your neck. Take a few moments several times throughout the day to take five deep breaths. Use your mood swings to listen to your body. When you start feeling agitated remember the acronym HALT and ask yourself am I hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. If you answer yes to any of these-fix it. Taking even a moment to prepare a cup of tea or a warm beverage and noticing how the warm cup feels in your hands will allow you to center yourself. Making small gestures for self-care tells our inner self hey-you matter, what you are feeling is real, you can do this.
• Focus: Every day we all have to focus on one thing or another in order to do well at our jobs and create financial abundance. If you are having a hard time focusing, stop what you are doing, take a short walk-even if only twenty steps, drink a glass of water with lemon, peppermint, or wild-orange essential oil, take a few deep breaths and get back to it. Diffusing these oils will also help with your ability to focus. 
• Thought patterns:We have all been told NO since we were children. As children this response is vital to our safety and well-being. As an adult we need to reprogram the way we think. Start noticing when you are thinking harmful thoughts such as: I shouldn't even try because I will not be good enough, I wish I looked better today, or I wish I had what *insert person's name* had. Notice them and change them to: I will be great at this and I will learn as I improve, I love the way my body looks and have a great self-image, and I am truly thankful for all of the things in my life. Even if you don't believe them at first if you keep changing your negative thoughts into positive ones IT WILL become a habit. It takes time to reprogram our subconscious mind. Several years ago a great friend told me I should read What to say when you talk to yourself since then I have really focused on how I talk to myself and have been able to improve my life in so many ways. You can do it too!

Spiritual/emotional needs:

• Self-love: What do you love? What sets your soul on fire? Whether you find bliss in meditation, blogging, creating art, coloring, singing, playing an instrument, making hemp or beaded jewelry, reading self improvement books, or having a massage you should remember to incorporate this into your daily life-even if you only have time for 10-15 minutes of it. Taking the time to focus on our bliss will inspire us in so many ways. We are saying hey self you are valued  and our self/soul responds with more creativity and positive emotions A great way to train yourself for positive thoughts is to wear a wristband or rubber-band on your wrist that you can snap. Snap that band when a negative thought crops up and replace it with a positive one. Or make a gesture where you are pulling that negative thought out of your abdomen, then literally throw it in the trash (even if you are across the room from the trashcan free-throw it in there or at least throw it on the ground). It may feel weird the first few times but the negative thoughts are just garbage that clutter your mind. Make room for positive thoughts.
• Gratitude: Make a list. It can be one thing each day or a list that you read to yourself each day. Whatever the case remember to be thankful for what you already have. Sending out positive vibrations of thankfulness to the universe attracts more people/experiences/things/opportunities into our lives to be thankful for. Remember you bring about what you think about. 
• Rest: If you are anything like me you can go non-stop all day and at the end of the day put your lunch, that you didn't take the time to eat, back into the refrigerator. Sometimes my days happen so fast I feel like I was watching the day happen to me from over my shoulder. It is important to establish daily moments of rest and reprieve. Whether your are an entrepreneur or a chef taking a break to look away from what you are doing, step outside, or think about nothing for a few minutes will allow you stay in top form. Challenge yourself to think about nothing once a day for two minutes. At first it will be hard but set a timer on your phone for two minutes and picture a clean whiteboard. When your mind starts trying to put words on it, wipe them off with your mind eraser. Rub a drop of your favorite essential oil over your heart when the timer goes off and go forward in your day with love.

Set up your routine:

• Make a list of all of the things that come to mind when reading the descriptions above. 
• Start at the beginning of your day with your first action when you get out of the bed and list every thing you will do throughout the day to meet your needs. 
• Make copies; put one next to your bed, on your desk, in your book-bag/purse/wallet, hang one on the fridge, and tell your significant other or best friend that you are committed to this daily wellness routine. You don't have to share it with them but telling someone out loud that you are committed will help you stay committed. 
• Remember this list is not about planning out your work day it is about what you will do for you.
• Do it, for 30 days. If you forget to do it one day just start again. 
• After one week write a note to yourself about how you feel after having completed your daily wellness routine for seven days straight.

Let me know what you think! 

Are you ready to start your daily wellness routine? What creative outlet will you pursue daily? How do you feel that this will change your life? Has it changed your life? Let me know in the comments section below! 

Have questions about setting up your routine or where I get my beloved essential oils? Email me!

Thank you so much for being a part of my life. Until next time, be well!

Kayla