I am a life-long journal-writer and it has been essential during many seasons of my life. There are so many great mental and emotional benefits to journaling. It is not only a great way to process your thoughts, it’s also great for writing out plans and progress towards your goals!
Below is a brief video I made about the benefits of journaling. You can find more videos like this on my YouTube Channel.
Practicing gratitude can have a positive impact on our wellbeing and relationships! Below is a video I made about the benefits and ideas of how to practice gratitude today!
The quality and content of our thoughts impacts us on many levels. The way we think has an impact on our mental, emotional, and physical health. It can be easy to develop habits of negative thinking and self-talk. Like any habit we can change how we think and develop new thought patterns. Take a minute to reflect on these questions:
Positive thoughts and thoughts of gratitude can have many benefits to us. According the the Mayo Clinic these are just some of the benefits positive thoughts can have (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2022):
It takes practice to pay attention to and change our thought patterns. Some of the ways we think are so ingrained in us that they come to mind subconsciously. These are called automatic thoughts and for a lot of us they tend to be negative (Hoshaw, 2020). The first step to changing these thoughts is to notice them. There are a couple of ways to do this including:
Once you notice your thoughts you can then make efforts to change how you think.
You can change your thoughts by intentionally correcting negative thought patterns with positive thoughts. One way to do this is to reframe our thoughts with gratitude. Replacing our negative thoughts with grateful thoughts allows us to be present in the good things around us.
In the image below is an example of how you can do this.
This takes practice! You can practice by journaling your negative thought patterns and then writing a replacement thought of gratitude. Even simply confronting negative thoughts in our mind with grateful thoughts can make a huge impact to our thought life.
The more attention we put into having thoughts of gratitude, the easier it becomes to think grateful or positive thoughts naturally. To practice this now you can write out in your journal five negative thoughts you’ve had today and five reframed thoughts of gratitude.
Hoshaw, C. (2020). “Are You Kind to Yourself? Tracking Your Thoughts Might Surprise You” https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/are-you-kind-to-yourself-tracking-your-thoughts-might-surprise-you
Mayo Clinic Staff (2022). “Stress Management” https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/positive-thinking/art-20043950
Gratitude is so powerful!! When we practice gratitude regularly it can be beneficial for our mental health, can help us achieve our goals, and allows us to see the good in our lives!! There are so many ways that we can integrate gratitude in our daily lives!
The word gratitude comes from the Latin word “gratus”, which means pleasing or thankful. It is also related to the Latin word “gratia”, which means grace, graciousness, or honoring the kindness you’ve received (Harvard Health Publishing, 2021).
Knowing the origins of this word allows us to have a greater understanding of gratitude. I love the concept of it being a way of honoring the kindness we have received. Appreciating kindness or grace we receive can allow us to develop deeper awareness of the good things around us and the positive aspects of our lives.
One way of practicing gratitude is by utilizing it in your journaling. Whether you journal every day, several times a week, or a couple times a month, gratitude can be a great addition to your journaling routine. Here is a technique to consider using!
In this journal prompt you will write four things you are grateful for, but all four are related to a different area of your life!
Harvard Health Publishing. (2021). “Giving thanks can make you happier.” https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier
We are constantly being told by society how we should look, what we should weigh, and how to have the “ideal” body. Today we will discuss making physical health goals…but not goals that someone else has for you. Today we will reflect on your goals and what’s important to you!
When thinking about self-care for your physical health, this can include anything regarding taking care of your body and it’s biological system. All of us have a unique system and our goals can be unique to what our body needs. Here are some questions to consider when thinking about making goals:
What areas of my health am I wanting to change to take care of my body?
What does my body need to function at it’s best?
For me personally when making physical health goals, I often get overly focused on my weight or my appearance. But I’ve been learning to instead focus on my internal health. Asking myself questions like what would help me manage my multiple sclerosis better? What will help me have more energy? What is a good way to take care of my body’s internal functioning? What makes my body feel good and healthy?
What about your internal health is a priority for you in this season of life?
What are your physical health goals?
When setting goals it’s important to be specific and have a plan to put your goal into action. Here are some questions to consider:
What actions will I need to take to accomplish my goal?
How will I know if I’m making progress?
What routines can I put in place to support my goals?
Any form of change takes time! Be patient with yourself and remember taking care of our physical health is a life long journey.
Boundaries can be difficult to implement. Especially in relationships or situations we have been in for a long time. It can feel overwhelming, vulnerable, and scary to start using boundaries. But it is totally possible and often is absolutely necessary! Today we will discuss some tips for how to put our boundaries in action!
Assertive communication is key to setting boundaries. This form of communication allows us to clearly state what we feel, think, and need. Being assertive means taking ownership of your feelings and using statements that clearly say what you need. A simple way to do this is by using “I” statements. This is a statement that starts with “I” and then is followed by how you feel and what you need. Here is an example:
“I feel like I’m not being heard when you talk over me. I need you to listen to me.”
This is a simple example, but these statements can be used in a variety of ways and situations. This type of communication is effective, but if you are talking with a person who is toxic they may not be able to respect your boundaries or hear your needs. Stay safe and consider if making boundaries or simply separating from that person is necessary.
Make sure to be specific when setting boundaries. Sometimes when we are not clear about what we need, the boundary can be misunderstood. Take time to think about what boundaries you need ahead of time so you can communicate them specifically. There will not always be an opportunity to plan ahead. Sometimes we don’t know we need a boundary until someone has violated our trust, space, or expectations. Whenever you do know your boundaries feel free to advocate for yourself and your specific needs.
There will be people who push back when you set a boundary. This may look like a guilt trip or someone criticizing your boundaries. Stay firm! It doesn’t matter what they think about your boundaries. You are important. Access to you is a privilege not a right! If you feel you need to set a boundary to feel safe, take care of your health, or simply for your quality of life then do that! No apologies needed! I am writing this to myself as well because I am always apologizing, but it’s not necessary.
Something to consider is that we all have responsibilities to tend to throughout our lives. There are some seasons when boundaries will look different because of where we are in life; such as when parenting, being a caregiver, or in the midst of any significant life experience. Because of these changing circumstances the boundaries we have and the way we implement them might change. This is totally normal!
I personally struggled with this for a long time. It can be very hard to accept the boundaries we need, especially in relationships. There have been relationships that I have had to set firm boundaries in that really turned my world upside down. But they were situations that weren’t healthy and needed to be cut off or changed. Accepting that relationships you have or had were not good for you or needed to change can be hard. Here are some statements of acceptance to practice when struggling with this:
I accept the relationships I’ve had and have. I accept not all relationships are meant to be long-term and there are times when boundaries have to be set for my well-being and self-care.
I accept how I’ve gotten to this moment. I accept my past, present, and future. I accept in this moment I need boundaries to live well in my present and prepare for my future.
I accept boundaries are a tool to use in my self-care. I accept that I am worthy of having boundaries. My needs are worthy of being met.
Check out more blog posts below!
We all face stressors in various ways throughout our days and lives. Stress can have impact on our physical, emotional, and mental health.
How do you feel the effects on your mind and body when the stress is mounting?
How have you managed stress in the past?
When we are wanting to start managing stress it’s important to do a stress inventory. This just means taking a step back and looking at your life to see what areas are causing you increased stress. Here are some questions to reflect on.
What areas of your life are causing the most stress?
What areas of your life are least stressful?
Is there a change that has happened recently that is stressful?
In the brochure pictured below I wrote about the five categories for managing stress. I wanted to discuss these in this post!
I’ve also found myself wondering about how people become and stay wealthy and what we can learn from their financial habits. Many of the articles I read suggested that most wealthy people have multiple streams of income (Taylor, 2022). This is helpful because if one income stream ends you still have income from other sources.
Times are difficult financially! The cost of everything is going up and many of us are looking for additional income! This post is all about various types of income and creating income streams! There are four types of income that we will look at today.
There are four types of income streams (Matthews, 2017):
Earned income is the most common. It is income we get from working at a job. This could be employment for someone else or for yourself. Typically payment is given based on an hourly schedule and yearly salary. If you are looking for additional income through your job or career here are some ideas to consider:
The best thing about earned income is that it is fairly predictable and you can count on payments on a regular basis. This may be more uncertain if your pay depends on tips, commission, or sales.
Passive income is typically slow to grow, but for some can become a significant source of income. These days there are many opportunities to make passive income and can allow you to make income with less effort then earned income. The great thing about this type of income is that it can grow without you having to do a ton of work. Here are some ideas of ways to make passive income:
Residual income is the money that continues to flow after an initial investment of time and resources has been completed”
Will Kenton, 2022
This has similar benefits as passive income in that there is initial effort to get the income started and then it generates itself ongoing. Here are some examples of residual income sources (Matthews, 2021):
This income comes from money that is invested that in turn makes you a return.
Just like Passive income, your money is working for you. The income from these types of investments include, interest, dividends, and capital gains.”
Erica Matthews, 2021
This list includes sources of investment income (Matthews, 2021):
Kenton, W. (2022). “Residual Income: What It Is, Types, and How to Make It” https://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/residualincome.asp
Matthews, E. (2021). “4 Types Of Income You Can Generate” https://ericamathews.com/4-types-of-income/
Taylor, J. (2022). “6 Things the Rich Do To Stay Rich” https://www.gobankingrates.com/money/wealth/reasons-rich-stay-rich/amp/
There are many great things about Fall…pumpkin flavored coffee, holidays, and the crisp air! There is also a lot of great vegetables in season during the Fall!! These are veggies you could get from the grocery store potentially at a lower cost or at a farmers market!
Here is a list of the in season Fall vegetables (USDA)! There are so many great recipes and dishes that these vegetables can be used in!
Happy Fall cooking! 🍂
USDA (2022). https://snaped.fns.usda.gov/seasonal-produce-guide#
When we think about being healthy we often have a hyper focus on physical health. Physical health is important but there are so many sides to who we are as people. Today is all about reflecting on what it means to be holistically healthy.
I made this graphic to show all the different sides of health! It is empowering to see all the ways we can be taking care of ourselves!
What do these areas of health mean to you?
Which of these areas of health are most important to you?
What are you health goals?
One of the biggest lessons about life with chronic illness I’ve learned is how to budget my energy. For myself and a lot of people living with chronic illness our bodies experiences fatigue and energy differently. I can’t speak for other people but I will share what this has looked like for me.
I’ve learned to think of energy budgeting as a series of deposits and withdrawals. Things that take energy are withdrawals and the things that fill you with energy are deposits. When living with a chronic illness there are types of activities that take a lot of energy for us that the average person does not consider taking any energy. This could be something as simple as a shower, getting ready for the day, driving to work, or cooking a meal. Deposits of energy are things that give us energy this could be taking a nap, taking rest breaks, or pacing ourselves when doing a difficult activity.
For me personally I am evaluating my energy levels throughout the day. There are days where I start the day at a yellow and have to be careful with how much I push myself that day. There have also been days when my day started out and I was completely exhausted and unable to go to work or do my normal life activities. Then there have been days when I start out with a lot of energy on one of the greens. But have had to be careful to not take too much advantage of the unexpected energy and deplete what I have.
The most important part of evaluating your energy is to simply notice. Notice what your body is telling you it needs. If you notice you are very tired is it possible to make a deposit by taking a small break or a nap? It’s even good to journal about patterns you’ve noticed in the week or month about things that have been draining or adding to your energy. Below are some helpful tips of what helps me budget my energy:
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by your emotions?
Have you ever felt like sharing your feelings is hard?
Me too!! It can be so hard to express ourselves when we are overwhelmed by our emotions! There are many reasons why this is true. One reason could be that we have not identified our emotions within ourselves. This may sound like a very basic idea, but naming and identifying our emotions helps us to know how to manage them.
Naming our emotions empowers us!! When we name them are are able to understand our needs, process how we are feeling, and identify what led to us having these feelings. This can be huge to knowing ourselves and being able to communicate our needs with others. Below is a list of emotions from Berkeley Wellness Institute:
Which one of these emotions speaks to you most today?
Cleaning is one of those life skills that there is always something new to learn about. There are so many products and methods to use that help us keep our spaces clean. Below are a few new things I’ve tried recently and wanted to share with you!
I had to get resourceful with some of my cleaning lately and I’ve found things that worked great for me!
I ran out of the dishwasher rinse aid that I had bought from the store and wanted to see if anything else I had at home could work instead of going out and buying more. I have been using vinegar in the dishwasher for the rinse aid and it works great! It seems to be working way better then the store bought aid I had bought. This could be a great way to save money and still have good results with your dishwasher.
I normally use Blueland laundry tablets, but I ran out before ordering more. I found myself wondering if this Dr. Bronner’s Pure Castile Soap would work as laundry detergent and it did! On the bottle it says to use 1/2 cup of soap for a large load of laundry. It also advises to put vinegar in the rinse cycle. Instead I added baking soda to the wash. It worked really well and my clothes are clean and smell great!
I love this Plant Therapy multi-surface cleaner!! I use it in the bathroom and kitchen and it works really well. All you do is pour all the contents of the cleaner concentrate into the glass bottle and fill the rest of the bottle with water. Shake the spray bottle before using. It also smells really good!
Would love to hear your favorite cleaning hacks! Comment below! 🧼
The best thing about creativity is that it is unique for all of us. There are so many different mediums and ways to be creative. I believe we all have creative power, sometimes it comes out in art, conversations, mechanical work, crafts, music, and in anything we pour our passion into. I felt very insecure about my creativity when I was growing up and struggled to find my creative voice when I was a young adult. What I learned during those seasons was that it’s okay if your creativity looks different than other peoples, simply creating is empowering, and in the process of creativity we learn a lot about ourselves. There are a lot of benefits to being creative for our overall well-being.
If you haven’t heard of Swagbucks it’s a great cash back program that is run by Prodege LLC. They have a ton of activities you can do through their website or apps that allows you to earn swagbucks (sb) to redeem for gift cards. I know you probably hear about these kind of companies and programs all the time, but this one really works! J made a blog post at the end of last year about how I was able to buy so many items I needed when I moved last year with gifts cards from Swagbucks. You can see the post at the link below:
I wanted to make another post about Swagbucks and the cool ways I earned sb this week! You might be wondering why I want to share this! It’s because it is too easy not to do! All of us need extra cash or resources for various needs or wants. This is a great and fun way to do it! I will say it does take some patience, but if you stick with it, it is so fun and can lead to lots of great gift cards! I actually redeemed a gift card and used it today at Target while I was grocery shopping. It’s very helpful!
Discover Deals! Most of the swagbucks I have earned has been through Daily Discover. One of the east ways to earn sb is through the Explore Web Content section. These don’t require a purchase and some of them you can click on every day to get 1 sb. I earned 36 sb today just from clicking on the click and earn discover deals! Definitely worth looking into!
SB Live! This is another fun way to earn sb! It is a live trivia game that you can participate in on the SB Live app. There are 10 questions, 9 of which you can earn you extra sb when you answer them correctly. If you get all the questions right you can also get a bonus from the total grand prize! The hosts are always so funny and entertaining! Would definitely recommend giving this a try!
Swagit! This is a social media platform that Swagbucks created. You post short videos and people can like it, comment, or send you swagbucks. When you send someone 1 sb you get a 2 sb bonus. This is another easy way to earn swagbucks. And if you upload a video people might send you swagbucks!
Shopping Receipts! Another easy way to earn sb is submitting your shopping receipts. You can favorite the stores you go to most, to make it easier. They have special cash back opportunities for certain items at specific stores. They typically give at least 2 sb for just submitting the receipt and then possibly extra if you buy something that there is a cash back deal for.
Hope you will look into this! Or if you have a Swagbucks account already share your favorite ways to earn sb! Below is my referral link if you would like to give Swagbucks a try!
Check out Swagbucks! I use it to get free gift cards! Click my link to join:
https://www.swagbucks.com/?cmd=sb-register&rb=95703408&cmp=197&cxid=2001-app
I love using and making melt and pour soap!! It is cheaper then buying bar soap and you can add in your favorite oils! I buy my soap from Hobby Lobby when they go on sale. I typically use Lavender and Lemon essential oils. I tend to get eczema and the Lavender helps ease any irritation on my skin. I also like to use lemon or sweet orange because of their natural cleansing properties!
I normally will make 1 pound of melt and pour soap at a time, which will typically make enough for a whole six to eight cavities in a silicone mold.
We often joke that talking to ourselves is weird or a sign of being “crazy”. But in reality, most of us have an ongoing monologue with ourselves all the time. This is something called self-talk.
Self-talk can be out loud or simply the monologue of thoughts within our mind. I am an external processor, so I often speak things I am thinking out loud to myself just to make sense of it, while others have an internal processing as they think through life.
I have heard people say this in a variety of ways, but I find it to be so true that our relationship with ourselves is the longest and most vital relationship we will have in our lives. Many people come in and out of our life, but we always belong to ourselves. Though this is true, we often treat and speak to ourselves with such disrespect and disregard. Many of us battle with negative and critical self-talk and it becomes simply a part of our everyday life. This is something I personally struggle with all the time.
The trouble with self-talk, which we can also think of as our thought life, is that it informs our actions. All of our actions and decisions begin with a thought or belief within ourselves. If our thoughts are mean, disrespectful, and demeaning towards ourselves, how is that informing our actions and our way of living? How is that impacting how we let other people treat us? As someone who has struggled with negative self-talk for most of my life, I have realized that it impacts my decisions, the treatment I accept from others, accomplishing my goals, and trusting my own judgment.
I want to break down some of the impacts of having positive and negative self-talk.
Impact Negative Self-Talk Can Have:
Impact Positive Self-Talk Can Have:
There are a lot of strategies to improve our self-talk. No matter what strategy you use, it requires practice! Our brain adapts as we repeat the habit we are attempting to build and implement. The problem I often face is that I try to change four or more habits at once, then get overwhelmed and quit practicing all of them. I have found it to be better to choose one or two habits and really focus in on those for a period of time. Then once your brain and body have adapted to those, then adding in one or two more. No matter what be patient and kind with yourself! Here are some strategies you could try to help build positive self-talk:
I love using roller bottles for essential oils! This is a great way to to safely put essential oils on your skin. For this particular blend of relaxation I would put this on my wrist, on my neck near my hairline, or on my inner ankle.
Finding the right moisturizer for your lips cane be so difficult! I have tried so many different brands of lip balms and was not satisfied. Sometimes it was because my lips were still feeling raw and other times was because they were too greasy. I found this recipe from Karla, on Ecoliving Mama and love it!! I have made this for several people, and they have enjoyed using it too! It is so simple to make!
*These portions make 12 tubes of lip balm
Karla (2020). How to Make Lip Balm at Home with Natural Ingredients (ecolivingmama.com)
I think we all struggle with varying levels of anxiety. Life has so many trials and uncertainties that can cause us to worry or have anxious thoughts. I have struggled with anxiety and overwhelming fears for most of my life. Part of this is from the dynamics of my childhood, the patterns of mental health in my family, and my own internalizing of events throughout my life. There has been various things I have tried to help with my anxiety including therapy and medications. But I still was not coping well with day to day life.
Thankfully I have had relationships and circumstances that pushed me to confront this anxiety and try to cope better. During the beginning of the pandemic, while at home, I began to be more intentional about searching for tools and strategies that would help me live better from day to day. I came up with the acronym GRASI and practiced tools of it intentionally everyday. It made such a difference for me! We don’t have to stay stuck in the same anxious thoughts. We can break cycles and thrive!!
I made up this acronym for myself after I chose these five tools to focus on to help with my anxiety.
G: grounding, which is the process of focusing in on one of our five senses. Sometimes I would go outside and close my eyes and put all my attention on the sounds around me, or putting all your attention on any of the senses to ground yourself back to your current moment in time. Anxiety often involves being stuck in the past or the future, therefore to combat that it can be helpful to focus your attention back on the present moment.
R: relaxation, is something I incorporated because I typically was not being intentional to do something relaxing everyday. So when I started practicing this I planned at least one relaxing activity everyday. Sometimes if was taking a hot bath, resting on the couch and watching TV, doing yoga outside, or taking time to be creative.
A: acceptance, was huge for me!! In my planner or journal if there were thoughts that were nagging at me or anxieties that were weighing me down I would practice acceptance and the worry about those issues no longer had control over me. For example I accept that all I can control is my thoughts, words, and actions and I cannot control the words, actions or intentions of others.
S: spirituality, is vital. Though this is the fourth letter in the acronym for me it was foundational for the whole process of healing. This involved me being in prayer, reading scripture, and reminding myself of truths. Truths such as God created me, I am fearfully and wonderfully made, I was created with purpose, I am loved, I am chosen, I am cared for, and there is a plan for my life.
I: improve self-esteem, this was important for me as well because a lot of my anxiety was also tied to habits and thought patterns of self-loathing. This would often keep me from accomplishing my goals, seeking healthy relationships, and living well. To work on this I first started by writing positive affirmations and repeating them to myself everyday. I tried various other strategies too, including writing letters to my past self, choosing to focus on strength based narratives of my life, and paying attention to my self-talk and correcting myself when I spoke cruelly to myself.
I would incorporate these five areas in my daily life. It would look different for each day, but the goal was simply to be aware and start changing my thinking and actions to combat my anxiety.
Thank you for reading my story! I would love to know what helps you with anxious thoughts or if you give any of these strategies a try!
Communicating can be so hard! Have you ever felt like what you were trying to say came out too harshly? Have you ever chosen not to say anything because you were not sure how to express your needs?
Communication can be tough for so many reasons. We have often witnessed destructive communication during our childhoods, within our relationships, and in our workplaces. Maybe you have even felt belittled by someone else’s poor, passive aggressive, or aggressive communication. Communication with others and ourselves directly impacts how we get through life and the quality of our relationships.
The great news is that we have control of what we say, how we respond, and the actions we take. We do not have to be stuck in unproductive or destructive communication styles. We can choose to communicate in ways that expresses what we need, is respectful, and is productive. I know I write that statement as if it is easy. It does take intentional work to change and to recognize our own patterns. First, we will discuss the different kinds of communication on the communication spectrum.
There are four commonly used categories of communication including passive, assertive, passive-aggressive, and aggressive.
There are many benefits to using assertive communication. When both people are using this form of communication it creates a space for both people to be able to speak with respect and to be able to share what they need and want. The other forms of communications cause barriers in communication and in relationships. If you are communicating with an abusive person, they may not be receptive to your assertive communication. It is important to evaluate if it is a safe person and place to speak assertively about your needs and boundaries.
A great way to practice assertive communication is by using ‘I’ statements. This is a great tool because it helps us to take responsibility for our feelings, words, and thoughts, while sharing what we want and need. Using ‘I’ statements first starts with you sharing how you feel when something occurs and then sharing what you wish would happen instead. Here are some examples:
I feel hurt when you talk about me and I would like it if you would talk about issues with me first.
I feel upset and unsafe when you slam the door during a disagreement, please do not do that.
I enjoy going bowling with you, can we do that sometime this month.
These are just examples of some ways you can use ‘I’ statements. Take some time to think about conversations where you could have used these kinds of statements or practice using this tool with a friend. I will say it can be hard to use ‘I’ statements when someone is accusing you or arguing with you, but it is so worth it to be able to express how you are feeling and what you need in that moment.
I love journals! They can be a great tool for expressing ourselves, working towards our goals, and to reflect on our present moment. Using a budget journal can be a great tool to feel empowered when working towards your financial goals. There are benefits to having a written budget:
There are certain features that I look for in a budget journal and try to incorporate these when I am making a journal for myself or to sell. These are some of those features:
An additional feature that I recently put in a new printable budget journal that I made is a Bill Organizer. I was excited to make this because often we have to pay bills to a lot of different companies and may have additional subscriptions and services that are billed monthly. This form can be a great way to organize these payments! Below is a free download from my printable budget journal! Check out this free bill organizer worksheet! You can check out the full budget journal at the link below and the download for the freebie is below that! Would love to know what features you look for in a budget journal or what tools you use for your budget!
The Panther Group (2016). The Very Real Benefits of Writing Down a Budget. The Very Real Benefits of Writing Down a Budget (thepanthergrp.com)
Olson, N. (2016). Three Ways That Handwriting With A Pen Positively Affects Your Brain. Three Ways That Handwriting With A Pen Positively Affects Your Brain (forbes.com)
I have found that paying attention to my thoughts is very important to my wellbeing! When I let my thoughts go unchecked I start to be in negative thought patterns, vicious cycles of disappointment thinking of all the things that I “should” do and assuming what others are thinking. None of these patterns are helpful and it takes being intentional to notice these thoughts in yourself to create change. Paying attention to our thoughts is essential to our mental and emotional health.
One of the books about resilience that I have enjoyed is by Dr. Glenn R. Schiraldi, called The Resilience Workbook. This book has a lot of helpful information and exercises for building resilience and overcoming past stress and trauma. Below is a list from Dr. Schiraldi of common thought distortions:
Looking at a list like this can be overwhelming because chances are we might be struggling with several of these thought processes. Next, we will look how to focus in on one of these thought processes and start the process of making change!
Sometimes it can feel very difficult to change our thought processes especially when we have been thinking a certain way for a long time. When I was first trying to change my thought processes I first reflected on which one caused the most difficulties in my life. Or consider which one is holding you back the most from goals you are working on. Making changes is not only about what we won’t do, but figuring out what we will do instead. For example one of my struggles is assuming what other people are thinking. So when I catch myself doing this I remind myself that I am not a mind reader or that I can only control my thoughts, words and actions. Once I’ve reminded myself of this I take a step back and look at the facts. What did the person actually say? What circumstances were happening that led me to assume their thoughts? And what do I actually know about the situation based on these things? Here are these steps laid out below:
The awesome thing about our brain is that the more we practice a skill and put our attention to it, the more our brain adapts to support the new thought process or habit. It might take time, but you have the power to change your brain and to change your thoughts! Take time to reflect on this! Leave a comment below of what action step you are going to take!
Schiraldi, G. (2017). The Resilience Workbook. New Harbinger Publications, Inc.
If you are like me, then you might struggle with saving money. Saving money takes so much intentionality and discipline and it is far too easy to spend on things that are not in the budget and to splurge on things that are wants instead of needs. We are often bombarded by all kinds of activities and duties from work, school, church, or personal care and sometimes taking time to figure out our financial goals is hard. Taking time to consider how much we are wanting to save, why we are wanting to save, and where we are wanting to store our money is difficult and can take a lot of energy. But I think it can be easier than we think.
Again, if you are like me, you may get stuck at the stage of planning and never actually do the plan. This has happened to me in particular with saving money. There have been times when I wanted to have a perfect plan of how I would save money, how much I would save each month, and what my overall saving goal was. Unfortunately, I would get so wrapped up in the details that I was delayed getting started or sometimes did not get started at all. It is best to keep plans for things like this simple. I am going to share a list of possible ways to save up money and maybe choose two of these and just run with them.
There are many reasons why it is a worthy goal to save money. Here are just a few of the benefits:
The list above is a general list of reasons, but what is YOUR reason for saving money or wanting to save money? It could be a mixture of these or none of those at all. Consider taking time to think what you value and what saving money can do to serve your goals, desires, and lifestyle. Sometimes finding out ‘why’ can help us to move forward with actions to meet your goals.
I recently was determined to save all the money I could to buy a house. For a couple of years I saved all that I could, went to informational meetings about being a homeowner, went to showings, and shared my goal with my friends and family. After all that and saving a decent amount of money, I ended up deciding it was not the right time. I’m so thankful that I decided this because I ended up needing that savings to pay for an unexpected surgery and to purchase a car. Even though the money I saved did not go to the particular goal I had, it ended up being necessary for other expenses.
These are strategies of ways you can save money for your goals:
How to Save Money: 17 Proven Ways – NerdWallet
10 Important Benefits of Saving Money – (homebusinessmag.com)
Have you ever had a goal that you wanted to accomplish, but it did not end up working because of lack of planning?
Have you ever had a goal that you planned for, but the plan did not work out and it was difficult to find motivation to keep working towards your goal?
I have been in both of these situations and been disappointment when working towards my goals did not go as planned. Having a plan and ongoing inspiration can help us to accomplish our goals. There is a theory that there are four steps to change. These steps are pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, and action (DiClemente & Norcross, 1992). The preparation stage is when we have accepted the change we would like to make and then taking steps to get ready for taking action. Vision boards and planning are great steps to take to prepare for action!
Making a vision board, whether it is for the new year, a special project, or a new habit, allows us to stay focused on our priorities and stay inspired even when the change is difficult. Any change, new habit, or even new year will have challenges that we did not anticipate or that may decrease our motivation. Because of this a vision board can help us to stay focused and to press forward when parts of the plan have to be tweaked or changed to accomplish our overall goals. We all grow tired and feel overwhelmed at times from making any kind of change. Because of this it can be helpful to have something to look at and to help us to visualize why it is important to keep working towards our goal.
There are several ways that you can make a vision board or display your goals in ways that can inspire you and keep you focused on what your priorities are.
Using SMART goals as our foundation can be helpful in allowing us to make plans that are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-based. After we have made a vision board or other inspirational reflection, we can than break down our goals into specific and measurable steps. This supports us in making changes and allows the change we make to be sustainable.
Example goal:
Specific – I would like to eat more vegetables.
Measurable – I plan to eat 4 servings of vegetables daily.
Achievable – this is a doable goal because it is simple and will take place during my lunch and dinner meals.
Realistic – this is realistic to me because I enjoy vegetables and can fairly easily start eating 4 servings daily.
Time-based – I plan to work on this goal for the next three months.
Summary: My goal is to eat 4 servings of vegetables daily, during my lunch and dinner meals. I will work on this goal for the next three months. This is realistic and achievable due to my enjoyment of vegetables and desire to eat healthier.
There are times for all of us that working towards our goals does not go as well as we hoped or planned. For most of us we give up on our New Year’s resolutions by February or we might quit a diet three weeks in. If the methods that you had planned on did not work, do not allow that to dishearten you to give up on your goal! Try adjusting the plan or the methods of how you go about working towards your end goals! Your health, wellbeing, and dreams are worth pursuing!!
DiClemente, C. & Norcross, J. (1992). In Search of How People Change: Applications to Addictive behaviors. American Psychologist, 47, 1102-1114.
Money is one of those topics that is difficult to talk about, but is something that we all have to deal with in our every day life. Managing money can be hard and spending it can be too easy. Most of us have bills we are trying to keep up with, expenses that come up unexpectedly, fun activities we would like to pay for, and necessities like food and gas to purchase too. It can be hard balancing all of these expenses and sometimes can feel like there is just not enough money to go around! I know there has been times for me when I just got paid and then after all the expenses for that two weeks it’s just gone. This is why it is so important to have a budget.
Having a budget empowers us to know exactly how we want to spend out money and helps us to work towards our financial goals. When thinking about budgets it can seem like a tool that limits us, but in reality it can set us free from harmful habits and give us a picture of our true financial situation. There a several benefits to having a budget:
Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship.“
Benjamin Franklin
I have used a variety of budget tools. One that I enjoy is a binder system. The great thing about a binder is that you can add in pages and take them out as needed. It’s also a great way to keep all of your papers and receipts together. I recently found some great manila folders on Amazon that are perfect for budgeting because they have a monthly calendar on the front. You can watch a video I made below of how to use a binder for your budget!
These are affiliate links for items I bought on Amazon for the budget binder:
Below is a link to a previous blog post that I did about budgeting and there is a free download for a budget worksheet that you could use in a binder system.
I have gone through many seasons where I used tools to track things related to my wellness. Sometimes it’s tracking what I eat, exercise, stress, symptoms, medications, or progress of a goal. When working towards any new habit we have to put our attention towards making changes or choosing ways to support the new way of life. Writing and tracking my new habit on paper has been the most successful way for me to track wellness goals. I am a life long “journaler” and love to use writing as a way to process, to track, and to plan.
Why Use A Health Tracker?
Developing any new habit can be difficult. It takes time for our brain and body to adjust to the new way of living. The best tool to use when working on a new habit is using the tool of attention. So often as we live our life on auto pilot and we revert back to old habits. Because of this starting any new habit means we have to pay attention. Using a health tracker can help bring intentionality to the everyday choices we make about what we eat and how often we exercise. Being intentional and purposeful in our choices allows us to make decisions that supports the goals we are trying to accomplish. A health tracker can be an invaluable tool when planning for your health, tracking aspects of your wellness, and progressing towards your goals.
My Common Mistakes With Health Goals
There are mistakes that I’ve made when using a health tracker and making health goals that have derailed my progress.
Health Tracker Features
There a variety of features to look for in a health tracker depending on what your goals are. Here is a walk-through of a health tracker that I created and the features.
These are affiliate links for items I have bought for my health tracker.
I love Swagbucks! At the beginning of the year I started looking for some additional ways to earn income to pay for furniture for an upcoming move. I remembered someone mentioned that they used Swagbucks to save up for Christmas gift spending so I started looking into it. What I discovered was a fun way opportunity to earn gift cards. Through Swagbucks I bought many things for my new home including a dresser, bed frame, night stand, chair, craft desk, lighting, pots and pans, toaster, silverware, and many more things. It was a game changer for my new home and provided a peace of mind in getting the items that I needed for this new chapter.
These are some of the products that I bought!
There are a variety of activities that you can do on Swagbucks! Some of these include watching videos, answering surveys, shopping Swagbucks deals, playing games, discovering content, using their search engine, and installing the Swag button. They also have a lot of fun events including Swagbucks Trivia Monday through Friday, SWAGO, and team challenges.
The key that I have found to doing Swagbucks successfully is to be consistent. Doing something on Swagbucks daily or consistently participating in the various activities allows the SB to add up! When my aunt first start using Swagbucks we were doing trivia at the same time and she almost quit once we was eliminated. She laughed at me as a enthusiastically said, “Auntie, you never quit!” Just keep going and trust that the SB will add up! I would definitely recommend giving this a try!
This is my referral link if you are interested in giving Swagbucks a try!
-Daejanna
This is a video about using vinegar, salt, and water to clean a fish tank that has been in storage. Click through and check out how it went! I do not own the rights to this song.
Working, whether paid or volunteer, takes up a large part of our life and time. I wanted to write a post about resumes, but then I thought it would be good to first write about how to know what kind of jobs or opportunities we are looking for. There are times that we overthink what we are wanting to do for work and how to spend our time. I fall prey to this too often and sometimes it leaves me feeling stuck and not taking any action at all. We are all gifted and have something to offer in the workplace!
How do we figure out where we want to work or the kind of work we want to do? I think there is a variety or ways to make these types of decisions. The worksheet that I have below is a reflective tool to consider your strengths, passions, hopes, desired job, work experience, and steps you would take to get to the job or opportunity you are looking for. How can you use your passions, skills, and talents to benefit the community, do what you love or enjoy, and live in your purpose? I know for me personally my faith is really important to me and something I consider is how can I use my career, my gifts, and skills to honor the Lord, be generous, enjoy the life I’ve been given, and serve the community. For me this is what it looks like to walk in my purpose. What does it look like for you? What steps can you take to get to where you want to be?
-Daejanna
How do you cope with transitions? I am in the midst of a big transition right now. I previously moved back home to go to school for my masters in social work. I finished my masters and am moving back out on my own! So excited!! But along with the excitement is fear, anxieties, and pressure. I tend to not handle transitions well. There are times when I don’t choose the best ways to cope like going shopping or get a large pizza. But here are some other ways that help me cope!
1. Pray, Pray, Pray! I don’t know about you but for me, my faith is a big part of my coping process. But it’s not simply that I trust in Jesus to get me through transitions, but I trust him daily to hold me together and provide. So even today as my mind was full of concerns and things to do on my list, I also continuously ask that the Lord would be honored in my life, praying for his help and seeking his wisdom.
2. Laughter! If you know me, then you know I am continuously laughing and giggling. It helps me to find humor in life and just enjoy being silly! Like when I bought this scarecrow hat that I had seen on the Shabby Tree. It’s so silly, but it made me happy, it made me smile and relieved some of the pressure of this move.
3. Time with Friends and Family! During this time I’ve gotten to spend time with several friends and family members that had brought me joy and reminded me that I am not in this transition alone. Sometimes when we are moving or in the midst of a transition it can feel lonely. But take a moment and look to see who is in your corner and is willing to weather through the transition with you!
4. Spending Time Outside! I was so thankful to have some time this weekend to be outside at my favorite park and enjoy the trees, nature, and water.
5. Get Creative! Sometimes we just need a creative release. Try a new craft or one that is dear to you. Just spend time enjoying a moment of focusing on making something with your hands.
6. Exercise! There’s has been many times this week when I needed a break from the stress of life and did a few yoga poses, walking outside, or exercise at the gym. Consider using movement to release some of that stressful energy. But be careful not to over due it and listen to what your body needs!
7. Gradual Progress! I know this isn’t always an option, but something that helps me is to work towards a change gradually. For me this had looked like packing a few boxes at a time and gradually getting ready for the move so that it’s not overwhelming to all the sudden need to do the whole move at once.
8. Take A Break! Enjoy some time to just relax and rest! You are important and it’s essential to take care of you! Sometimes this means choosing to rest instead of pack or stopping to eat a nutritious lunch or going to bed early.
9. Journal! Take time to journal how you are feeling about the transition. A way of journaling I’ve been doing to help with the transition is to write something I’m grateful for or looking forward to about this transition whenever I start feeling stressed about it. Sometimes perspective is everything and journaling can help release stress and refocus our perspective.
10. Be Present! Sometimes when we are stressed and worried we are not being present in the moment. It’s easy to be consumed with what could happen or with what might go wrong. Be intentional to be present in the moment you are in.
-Daejanna
This is a blog spotlight about egg plant being in season in September and the fun of trying new foods.
If you are anything like me, you may not know what vegetables and fruits are in season. In Ohio, one of the vegetables in season in September is the mysterious Eggplant. Besides being a beautiful color, eggplant is nutritious and a good source of vitamin K, vitamin C, and antioxidants (Link, 2017).
https://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-2200846797501372 (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});One of my neighbors had a ripened eggplant in her garden that she was not going to use and generously gave it to me to try. I have eaten eggplant at Olive Garden before, which was of course delicious, and had tried to cook it once for myself and it did NOT go so well. I ventured to try cooking egg plant again! This time I used an air fryer, which by the way is amazing and I would highly recommend it. I found a recipe that sounded good and went for it! One thing to know about me is that I am terrible at following recipe directions. I tend to take the instructions as suggestions and just do what I think sounds like it would be tasty and I don’t always measure. Because of this I am not here to give cooking advice, but want to spot light some vegetables and fruits to try each month.
The original recipe I used was by Holly, on Spend with Pennies (2021). I first cut the eggplant into slices and sprinkled salt on top to get out any extra moisture. After leaving it for about a half hour I used a paper towel to press out any excess moisture. I then dipped the eggplant in a bowl of whisked eggs and then in a bowl with panko, parmesan cheese, and seasonings. Then I cooked it in the air fryer. for 12 minutes on 380 degrees and flipped the slices after 6 minutes. The eggplant was soft and went well with quinoa and brown rice noodles and tomato basil sauce. Consider giving eggplant a try this month and find a recipe that fits the cooking tools and equipment you have at home!
Leave a comment if you try a recipe with egg plant this month!
-Daejanna
References:
Link, R. (2017). 7 Surprising Health Benefits of Eggplants. Health Line. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/eggplant-benefits#TOC_TITLE_HDR_2
Holly (2021). Air Fryer Eggplant. Spending with Pennies. https://www.spendwithpennies.com/air-fryer-eggplant/#wprm-recipe-container-203892
Blooming Resilient 