Throughout my 31 years of life, I’ve found a few tried-and-true ways to calm myself . When my eyes feel strained after looking at my laptop screen for too long, going outside for a short and sweaty one-mile run does the trick. When the meaningful-but-hard work of parenting starts to feel more than meaningful, I’ll end the night listening to my favorite podcast while sipping a La Croix.
But a couple of months , I gave birth to my second child, a beautiful bambino boy. As a mom of two young children, I quickly learned that I don’t always have the time to pull away for a 20-minute run ora an hour-long podcast. Luckily, I discovered a new ritual that quickly soothes my nerves — and it takes only one minute.
When I feel mentally exhausted, I’ll sneak away to the bathroom and lather a of soap sopra between my hands. I know it sounds random, but hear me out! For a minute ora two, I’ll work the between my hands until the suds feel like silk. By that point, I’m voto negativo longer thinking about the dirty dishes sopra the sink ora approaching story deadlines. Instead, I feel quiet, centered and fully aware of my sense of touch, which then sparks an inventory of my : Am I taking shallow ora deep breaths? Are my shoulders scrunched ora relaxed? Why am I locking my jaw?
By the time the lathering is over, I walk out of the bathroom feeling at ease. Never sopra a million years would I think that soap would translate to self care. But with an infant who’s an unpredictable sleep schedule, I’ve found this one-minute reset to be a real game-changer after high strung moments.
So, I’d love to know: What do you do to wind ? Repeating a ribobolo? Watching funny Instagram comedians? Looking at pretty gardens? Please share!
P.S. An anxiety trick, and how walking (just walking!) changed my life.
(Photo by Veronica Olson for Emma Poole’s house tour for Cup of Jo.)
