My Happy Place
Today I got up earlier than I would normally on a day-off. I put on my running shoes and set off up the hill behind my house for a run with my dog, Tally.
It's been a while since I did this-actually several months since I last did it, and a couple of years since I did it on a regular basis.
Realising that my fitness levels were becoming worse and that I was gaining weight, gave me the impetus to get back to a regular exercise regime and to go back to healthy eating habits.
More of the healthy eating habits in another post but for today I want to share what I learned about self-care on my run.
The main take-away was; I rediscovered my happy place!
Getting up that hill, huffing and puffing, dragging my feet, thinking "was this really a good idea", I suddenly came to the field I have run through countless times in the past and stopped, looked around me and realised, THIS is one of my happy places. A place where the concerns of the world fade away and where I feel relaxed, happy, and truly myself.
I stopped to take in this realisation. I listened to the birdsong and the wind rustling through the trees. And I wondered, why do I not seek out these "Happy places" more often in my self-care journey?
I actually have several Happy places, not all of them easy to access physically as they may be in other countries, but which I can access any time I like in my imagination and my mind's eye.
I have a Happy place on a ski-run in the Swiss Alps-a place that always brings a smile to my face whenever I think of the many times I have skied down it with the cool breeze in my face and the view of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau.
I have a Happy place on the Mull of Kintyre on the west coast of Scotland where my parents took my sister and I every year for childhood holidays-there is a grassy mound overlooking the sea which became my bolt-hole during the turbulent teenage years when emotions and hormones were raging and I needed a place to sit, look out to sea and just be me.
I have a Happy place in Cornwall, where we took our children every year when they were young and which feels like a world away from school, work and the daily worries of life.
Our Happy places are often places where we have been relaxed and free from stress and worry. They are often places we have visited on holiday, or places we visit in our leisure time. They may have significance due to family events happening there or simply for being a place of escape.
So what do I do if I need a dose of "Happy place"? I've been dipping my toe into meditation over the past year and although I don't find it easy, due to my busy mind and intruding thoughts, I do find that when I relax, practice some calming breaths and imagine myself in one of my happy places I can be transported to a calmer state. If I imagine all the feelings this happy place brings out, using all my senses, imagining what i can see, feel, smell, taste, hear, the feelings of peace and calm and even happiness increase.
Happy places are important and can help our mental health. If you don't have a Happy place, why not look for one and make it your go-to place when you feel you need it.
It's been a while since I did this-actually several months since I last did it, and a couple of years since I did it on a regular basis.
Realising that my fitness levels were becoming worse and that I was gaining weight, gave me the impetus to get back to a regular exercise regime and to go back to healthy eating habits.
More of the healthy eating habits in another post but for today I want to share what I learned about self-care on my run.
The main take-away was; I rediscovered my happy place!
Getting up that hill, huffing and puffing, dragging my feet, thinking "was this really a good idea", I suddenly came to the field I have run through countless times in the past and stopped, looked around me and realised, THIS is one of my happy places. A place where the concerns of the world fade away and where I feel relaxed, happy, and truly myself.
I stopped to take in this realisation. I listened to the birdsong and the wind rustling through the trees. And I wondered, why do I not seek out these "Happy places" more often in my self-care journey?
I actually have several Happy places, not all of them easy to access physically as they may be in other countries, but which I can access any time I like in my imagination and my mind's eye.
I have a Happy place on a ski-run in the Swiss Alps-a place that always brings a smile to my face whenever I think of the many times I have skied down it with the cool breeze in my face and the view of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau.
I have a Happy place on the Mull of Kintyre on the west coast of Scotland where my parents took my sister and I every year for childhood holidays-there is a grassy mound overlooking the sea which became my bolt-hole during the turbulent teenage years when emotions and hormones were raging and I needed a place to sit, look out to sea and just be me.
I have a Happy place in Cornwall, where we took our children every year when they were young and which feels like a world away from school, work and the daily worries of life.
Our Happy places are often places where we have been relaxed and free from stress and worry. They are often places we have visited on holiday, or places we visit in our leisure time. They may have significance due to family events happening there or simply for being a place of escape.
So what do I do if I need a dose of "Happy place"? I've been dipping my toe into meditation over the past year and although I don't find it easy, due to my busy mind and intruding thoughts, I do find that when I relax, practice some calming breaths and imagine myself in one of my happy places I can be transported to a calmer state. If I imagine all the feelings this happy place brings out, using all my senses, imagining what i can see, feel, smell, taste, hear, the feelings of peace and calm and even happiness increase.
Happy places are important and can help our mental health. If you don't have a Happy place, why not look for one and make it your go-to place when you feel you need it.
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