I just wanted to to share something good from my weekend and see if anyone else has anything good to share.
I FINALLY planted the 100 tulip bulbs that I bought last month. I forget to plant bulbs every Fall and then am disappointed in the Spring. This time I managed to do it! 🌷🌷🌷
That's really great, thank you!⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘
I managed to care for myself by having a very tasty but simple meal and not feeling bad about it afterwards. 🍽
🙂👍
Yeah! No guilt! 😃 I love the times when I can just exist without feeling anxious or guilty or...
That's great Marnie and BrainIsFull,
I'm really pleased to hear that.
A good thing I want to share is that I'm managing to eat a healthy breakfast more consistently.
I mention it a little in a reply I wrote to Marnie recently.
I myself am working toward a more positive relationship with food and part of that is recognising, like you mentioned, the sense of feeling well (nourished, revitalized, etc.) soon, if not immediately, after consuming salubrious (health giving) food.
This is opposed to believing I have to eat well, and not "treat" myself, in order to make myself healthy some day in the future. I can eat healthily and enjoy doing so, and feel better for it right now. Here is the reply link: healthunlocked.com/healmypt...
As time has gone by, my idea of a healthy breakfast has gradually evolved and I've eventually managed to, in my mind at least, perfect it. It's a small chopped banana, with 15 blueberries (that exact number, I count them and it'll only vary if there's a different amount when the packet is running low).
This is then topped with greek style soya yoghurt, and a dried fruit and nut assortment. (Ask if you want to know what this is specifically. I don't want to go into unnecessary detail.)
It's both delicious and nutritionally valuable, and as I said in the above reply:
I also find it helpful to remind myself just how delicious a healthy and nourishing meal really is.
It's funny, because, for whatever reason, my mind (and I'm sure other people's too) will latch on to remembering how yummy unhealthy food is (or at least food that is deemed unhealthy by society), but I tend to forget how tasty healthier food is. I won't realise what I've been missing until I eat well again.
Having learnt to remember this better, the only other barrier that kept me from having it consistently was that preparing it could be a faff. It could even be time consuming and tedious.
I couldn't be doing with the faff of preparing it while so hungry, so would usually just end up giving up on it, and pouring cereal straight into a bowl instead for convenience.
However, I've found a few strategies that have helped me to overcome this. Specifically, one is "cute" (IMHO) little handheld plastic tubs, that each hold 15 blueberries (one portion).
I just searched for "small plastic tubs with lids", found them, and ordered them. They came in a pack of six. They've made all the difference.
Instead of having to count the blueberries while I prepare breakfast, I now just pour the one portion straight from the small tub, into the bowl. Super easy.
As soon as I get a new packet of blueberries, I divide them up into the tubs and then I can see straight away how many I have and how long they will last me.
This is opposed to having to estimate how many I have left from looking at them in their original packet - something I was very bad at.
It will also keep them fresher for longer due to them being in a sealed container, as opposed to when they were in the original packet and could get squashed from people stacking other fridge stuff on top of them.
I also brought similar small tubs from the same company, although a different shape and taller, to store one portion each of my fruit and nut assortment.
I now batch prepare the tubs (which in itself is therapeutic) during the evening so they're to hand when I prepare breakfast. Again, I now just pour it straight on top rather than having to count them from each individual packet of dried fruit or nut. (Like with the blueberries, I have very specific amounts and proportions.)
These taller tubs live in the cupboard directly above the counter where I prepare my breakfast, so they're at the point of performance.
Because of this, I now no longer have to leave the counter in order to walk to the larder to retrieve the dried fruit and nut packets.
I no longer spend time in the larder searching for, say, raisins, and then pour them on my breakfast, and take them back to the larder to put them away... And then have to do the same again with the almonds.
As I said, preparing it beforehand was a faff.
Now though, it's all preprepared, waiting to be poured from these tubs.
If all that wasn't already helpful, I also have a banana slicer. It's not as essential as the tubs, but at the very least, it will make the peices of the banana the same size, which I prefer, and will save some time.
Because of this, I've now taken the time and stress out of preparing this breakfast and as a result I am eating it consistently, which I'm really pleased about. It's empowering. It's great knowing that I'm making a healthy choice and I've found a way of making this actionable. 😁
I'm probably not the first person to coin the phrase "Self Care Hacks", but that's how I think about it.
I've been learning lately that some of the barriers to self care aren't trauma/mental health related. They can just be something straight forward, in the environment, that can easily be resolved with simple changes. 😊
Thankyou for inviting us to share something positive. It's important.
Enjoy those tulips. 🌷
Xx
Well done, BrainIsFull. That sounds amazing! Looking forward to your photos when they bloom...
I've got some positive moments but I noticed it's harder to take those in after a long recovery from a surgery.
I have lots of days when I either can't identify the positives or I can name them but not feel them. It comes and goes, right?
Good ridence academia
Ptsd and sleeping 
It is back 
Fractured dreams
