Looking Back and Taking Time to Celebrate
It’s been 35 days since I’ve made the move to the virtual world. Your transition may have happened sooner or later, but either way we’ve all made it longer than a month with stay home orders, altered school and work places, and completely new routines. That’s impressive and deserves a moment of celebration!
This isn’t easy, this is, in fact, extremely tiring for our brain to have to pay attention to so many new things. Have you noticed how draining it can be just to go to the grocery store and bring those groceries home? Or how draining a day of work or taking care your to-do list of kids, house duties, and anything else can be? Or even how draining a video chat or sharing a video with friends and family can be? There is so much novelty in everything we are doing even with routine things like grocery shopping - we now have to wear a mask, we have to pay attention to what we touch, we might be wiping everything down or washing things in a new way, technology takes time to learn - and while this is great for change, adaptation and learning, it’s tiring. Our brain uses so much energy on a regular basis and we are now using our brain in overdrive so it’s using even more energy. Make sure you are eating well, staying hydrated and finding some time for mental rest - look up at the sky, go for a walk with no music or talking, close your eyes and just pause, meditate, or take a nap. These things aren’t easy and often feel unproductive in our society, but try it out even for 1-2 minutes and I think your brain will thank you!
With all of this effort that our brain and nervous system are putting out, we can also balance that with mental rest and we should also celebrate, give ourselves a reward, and practice gratitude! Our brain loves these things and secretes numerous feel good hormones (dopamine and serotonin primarily) when we partake in these things. So take another minute or two - or even a whole day or hour - to balance out all of your stress and anxiety hormones (adrenaline and cortisol) with some feel good celebration! Take some time today to look back on what you’ve accomplished since these unprecedented times began give yourself a pat on the back, a dance party, shout yee-ha, or take a big sigh of relief for making it (even if it wasn’t all pretty).
Check out my Instagram post for some pictures of a few of our highlights: time in nature on the amazing trails around the Upper Valley, moving studio essentials home, spring snow, many amazing sunrises, creating a home studio, family walks, and more time in nature soaking up the sun. Not pictured: incredible learning from teachers all over the country, hours of podcast and audio book listening, time spent off my phone and away from screens, bouts of anxiety, days of feeling completely unproductive and frustrated, and connecting with friends and family more than ever.
Today, I’m taking a moment to celebrate it all and I invite you to do the same! These aren’t easy times, but we’re making it and we’re all learning and adapting and that’s pretty damn awesome! See what you can do to release some more dopamine and serotonin to balance out all the adrenaline and cortisol - your brain and body will thank you!