VNV Tuesday – A Self-Care Reminder 2/6/18

February 6, 2018 DoReMI Featured Posts, It Takes a Village 26

We get by with a little help from our friends…and by practicing self-care.
I love winter, but in my neck of the woods, the enjoyment comes at a price. For every peaceful snowfall, there are sidewalks to be shoveled; for each moment of ice-covered marvel, there is the stress of navigating slick roads; for each breath of crisp, clean air, there is the effort of staying warm. When you add that to the ongoing shitshow of the Current Administration, it means a lot of energy, both physical and emotional, is expended, and my reserves start to run low. We’ve all talked about self-care since we knew #Resistance was going to be our only path forward, but now seems like a good time to remind ourselves what that means.

Healthy eating: When you’re lagging, it’s tempting to resort to the fastest, easiest food possible. Just remember, that can mean a simple meal in the crockpot, rather than the fast food joint on the corner.

Regular physical exercise: The key is to make physical activity a regular part of your day, whether that’s a brisk walk, using stairs rather than an elevator, or cleaning the house. Aim for a minimum of 30 minutes each day.

Reduce stress: We each have our own means and methods (for me, it’s cozy mysteries, coloring, and doing puzzles), but knowing one’s guilty pleasures and indulging in them helps maintain some semblance of sanity.

Time management: If you’re saying, “There just isn’t enough time!!!” on a regular basis, it may be time to take stock of your priorities and goals to ensure you’re not biting off more than you can chew or just plain procrastinating.

Relaxation: This is not to be confused with lounging on the couch or general laziness; it is an active process that leaves one relaxed, whether it’s massage, yoga, Tai chi, or just the practice of tensing and relaxing one’s muscles.

Mindfulness: The act of “awareness without judgment of what is, via direct and immediate experience”. It’s the difference between eating and savoring; between listening and hearing; between seeing and noticing.

Avoiding compassion fatigue: Avoiding is not the same as avoidance. Knowing your limits, asking for help, and recognizing that no one person can do it alone makes compassion fatigue much less likely.

Assertiveness: Direct, honest communication, as well as setting boundaries, make for a healthier, happier person.

And remember, when we work together, our voices will be heard. #StrongerTogether

About DoReMI 165 Articles
Now a Michigander, by way of Ohio, Illinois, Scotland, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania. Gardener. Sewer. Democrat. Resister.

26 Comments

  1. Morning meese….Thanks Sher…You’re diaries are always wonderful to wake up to…Love the Basset’s and their lovable sucking up to get attention.

    • Thank you, Batch. Just to give you a heads up, there will be a post here on Thursday too. I swapped days with Janesaunt at the Orange Village, because she saw a comment where I expressed being [physically] tired and offered to take today for me. It works out better for her schedule this week, so it was a win-win. #StrongerTogether in action!

      On an unrelated note, when you worked in the construction industry, did you just do new builds, or did you do renovations too? I ask because my tiredness of yesterday was caused by helping with tearing up The Kiddo’s basement this weekend and discovered the demo part is fun, but the clean-up is a royal PITA. Are there any hints or tips you’d like to share?

      • Hi Sher…I did both…Yeah, demo can be fun but it can also be a big pain in the ass once you start seeing what’s underneath.Got to be careful with old insulation becasue a lot of asbestos was used. Make sure you’re careful.
        Not sure what you mean by hints or tips…Referring to what specifically becasue it depends on what you’re looking to do.

        • My S-I-L is the most careful person you can imagine; he sent out samples of everything we were tearing out to have them tested for asbestos before he announced Demo Day! And then he had respirators with the appropriate filters for us all, as well as safety glasses. I wish we had gotten pictures of us; we looked like we were preparing for a mission in space, rather than just tearing out paneling, carpet tiles, and ceiling tiles/drywall.

          I was thinking survival tips, lol! Getting all that debris upstairs and outside is what nearly did me in, but despite being surrounded by some of the smartest people I know, humping it out seemed the only option available to us. So we did it. I don’t think there was any way to streamline the process, although by the end of the day, I suggested that having a masseuse on hand would have been a worthwhile investment.

    • {{{Batch}}} – g’morning – hope your day goes reasonably well and you manage to stay warm. moar {{{HUGS}}}

  2. {{{DoReMI}}} – a great reminder all the better when illustrated by basset hounds :) – my most difficult one is getting that exercise into my routine. It was easier when I was working. The walk from the parking lot to the office was 4 minutes (or more if our “usual” lot was full and we had to park further out), it was 200 steps round trip from my desk to the Dean’s office reception desk almost half of it stairs – even if I didn’t walk home (just under 3 miles) I could still get about 30 minutes a day in bits and pieces. Now I have to get myself onto the treadmill and I’m not managing that daily. sigh.

    The Resistance reminder box is one more thing that I used to post daily that has fallen by the wayside. Oh well, I’m just happy that the needs list and Kos Katalogue links are still being posted. It does indeed take a Village. moar {{{HUGS}}}

    • Goid morning, bfitz. Just to clarify, we do have a resistance/action box but people aren’t putting items in it. I’m thinking as it gets closer to midterms we might get more action items.

      • {{{WYgal}}} – Yes I know – the new “heading” boxes are great – but of course somebody has to be looking for the stuff to put under them. I haven’t been doing it since I can’t post anything but maybe I should – at least try to find and tell somebody about special elections – when, what, and who the Dem candidate is. (or do you think hpg would do it if you asked him? – just list the Special Elections with date, position, and Dem candidate – nothing else?) But actually what I meant was the box of 6 items I put at the end of my string of community & resistance stuff in every Village diary. The one that started “It’s not a race – it’s a war…” I’d copy it over but WordPress doesn’t do the formatting the same way but you can find it in any Village diary prior to 11/6/17 at 11:30 or so. moar {{{HUGS}}}

        • As hpg remarked, today is your three month. He posted your cat pics. I added it and asked njm about posting it daily.

          • I saw. Thank you – and njm – both for that. and thank hpg for the notice and the cat pictures. moar {{{HUGS}}}

    • You get the credit for this one, bfitz. I was just going to announce that I wasn’t doing a post today (after Janesaunt and I decided to swap over at the Orange) when you mentioned Basset hounds. I realized I could have my cake and eat it too if I let the Basset tweets do all the work. I’ll be cross-posting my Thursday Orange post here; new post, different day.

      I hear you about the exercise. When the pups were younger, I used to come home from work and take them out for a long walk every night. But then a few things happened: We tore down the fencing that divided our yard and put up a new one (made of pallet wood of all things, so free!) that allowed them full access to our very large back yard. This enables them to do far more tearing around than previously and get plenty of exercise. And then they outgrew their puppy phase and entered full-blown adulthood; in a basset, that means comfort-loving and couch potato-ing. Now if I try to take them for walks if it’s too cold or too hot, I get met with disdain and resistance. So my daily exercise has declined; I don’t love winter quite enough to go on long walks after work without the assistance of my canine companions. But after writing this post, I realize I may have to rethink that.

      • As a dog walker in all types of weather except snow, even a little walk is good for both you and them.

        I so want a Bassett.

        • My older boy fights it every step of the way now; he just hates having his paws get wet! Even getting him in the backyard is a trial sometimes…if the snow is too wet or it’s too cold, he barely moves past the back door. My little girl is far less concerned, so I should just start taking her for walks each night (but then I’ll be dealing with a pouty, jealous boy…are you sure you want a Basset?) It really is liking dealing with toddlers sometimes, but I wouldn’t trade a moment of it!

    • You get the credit for this one, bfitz. I was just going to announce that I wasn’t doing a post today (after Janesaunt and I decided to swap over at the Orange) when you mentioned Basset hounds. I realized I could have my cake and eat it too if I let the Basset tweets do all the work. I’ll be cross-posting my Thursday Orange post here; new post, different day.

      I hear you about the exercise. When the pups were younger, I used to come home from work and take them out for a long walk every night. But then a few things happened: We tore down the fencing that divided our yard and put up a new one (made of pallet wood of all things, so free!) that allowed them full access to our very large back yard. This enables them to do far more tearing around than previously and get plenty of exercise. And then they outgrew their puppy phase and entered full-blown adulthood; in a basset, that means comfort-loving and couch potato-ing. Now if I try to take them for walks if it’s too cold or too hot, I get met with disdain and resistance. So my daily exercise has declined; I don’t love winter quite enough to go on long walks after work without the assistance of my canine companions. But after writing this post, I realize I may have to rethink that.

      • Not sure how I managed a double-post; it’s almost as if the DK5 gremlins have migrated over here!

        • I think it was my fault!! I was putting your post into Featured Posts and needed to put your doggie in as a Featured Image (Featured Posts need Featured Images in my world view). I clicked too fast between adding the image and saving the post and the WordPress server 505ed which is a database hiccup.

          Of course NOW I can’t delete your second comment because – look! – all sorts of comments are hanging off it. :)

          • LOL, I was surprised because usually I get the “it looks like you’ve already posted this comment” warning. I just assumed I wasn’t caffeinated enough and skipped by the message.

  3. Good morning, Pond Dwellers and thanks for the self care diary this morning, DoReMi. You should save this and use it at Orange. It’s a good reminder for all. Ever since I discovered that posting overload (whether by hpg or others) especially negative is my kryptonite, I walk away if it gets toxic. Last night, I tried to gently school hpg that he was posting too much stock information. Then…I posted a few other things and left. I am trying to correct what isn’t good and guide him when needed. It’s tiring.

    Now, I am going to get a cup of the good stuff and watch the videos again.

    • Yeah – when hpg gets excited it’s really hard to get through to him. He’s still excited about the Market this morning but not as excited as yesterday when it was dropping like a rock even as mad king donald was boasting about how great things are. Thank you for doing the work of moderating the Village. I know how much work that is. {{{HUGS}}}

    • You’ve made remarkable headway. I’m sure I’m not alone in appreciating the guidance and gentle correction you’ve provided over the past few months. It’s made a difference.

        • Could be worse. You could be housebreaking a puppy. :) – really, thank you for working with him. I know it’s tiring and he’s a bit tiresome at times but he’s so sweet and so excited at having found us/being a part of the Village. His grasp of English/American grammar escapes him when he gets too excited and that doesn’t help. I truly do appreciate you doing this. moar {{{HUGS}}}

    • {{{basket}}} hope your day is going well – and considering what time it is where you are, that you’ve had or are having a nice lunch. :) moar {{{HUGS}}}

  5. Hi hi! Love the Bassetts! I know I should come over here more. I will try! <3 Love to all Meeses!

    • {{{MomentaryGrace}}} – be nice to see you where I can actually respond. :) {{{HUGS}}} to V & skritches to da furbaby. moar {{{HUGS}}} & Healing Energy.

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