Your self-care should not be defined by others. I read articles , Pins, Blogs, and whatevers about meditating, deep breathing, taking a bath in essential oils, going away for the weekend alone and blah blah blah. Ok sometimes maybe I could try to swing some of it. I’ll admit I have recently learned deep breathing and it has made a world of difference for me. I cannot follow the instructions completely but at least I get in few and it really helps calm an anxious moment. I have not mastered meditating because I can’t sit still and focus long enough. Epsom Salt Baths are very therapeutic for sore muscles after a long nursing shift. But have you ever heard that laughing increases serotonin?
So I stumbled upon a 80s ’til Now radio station whose motto is “The Feel Good Station.” Even on the Saturday and Sunday when the other radio stations are playing info-mercials, as I make my way to work at six a.m., this station is true to the motto. From Air Supply to Pink to Bon Jovi, every sing along song I can and can’t think of. This has turned out to be a great version of Self-Care.
As I’m driving to work having my sing along (or sing alone as I have named it) and belting out all the wrong words, I’m soon laughing at myself or smiling at a memory from 1983 that John Cougar Mellencamp brought up. Ahhhh, take me back. Within a couple of songs…Good mood! Don’t get me wrong, I prefer Banger music (My daughter calls it “dad rock”) Linkin Park, Disturbed, Slip Knot, Foo Fighters, and I typically listen to this if I have a choice. The “Feel Good Station” is a form of Self-Care in my book.
Listening to music from when you were a kid is such a feel good thing to do!! Brings you back to a simpler time