10 Ways to Replenish Yourself
As a mental health professional, I spend my days encouraging people to take a step back and observe the amount of mental energy they exert on a daily, weekly and sporadic basis. After they recognize the levels of release, we work together to create plans to replenish their energy. After a period of time, my clients begin to acclimate to their routines and report improved rates of mental wellness. I’ve decided to create a comprehensive list of skills that replenish people. I hope that you enjoy!
1.) Setting your weekly Mental Vacation-
Mental vacations are extremely beneficial! We all need time to spend relaxing and enjoying our lives. This will help replenish the energy that you exert.
Why?
We all need to give our brains scheduled time to rest so that it has the opportunity to replenish the energy that it exerts during stressful situations. This will allow your brain to exhale all of the tension that it experiences and bring in healthy energy. I compare it too running a marathon. Eventually you have to stop and breathe deeply.
How it works-
Choose 1 day a week (It must be a day that you can routinely use-I.e Friday afternoons). This day you will take at least 2 hours and separate from your normal routine. During this time, you can meditate, take a long bath, paint, read, hell- do nothing etc. Be sure to only engage in an activity that relaxes you and brings you enjoyment. You can choose to complete this activity alone, or with a friend. In order to reach the full benefit of mental vacations, you must ensure that it occurs consistently and the timing does not change.
2.) Eyes Open Routine
Good morning!! It is super important to create an open eye routine! These routines will be building blocks to improving your moods and productivity.
Why:
Ok stragglers! I know that non morning people need a lot of help to get going. An Eyes open routine will help motivate you and organize your day. You will rush around less, remember things and have less time for errors. Also, you will start your day off on a positive note and will manage difficulties of the day in healthier ways. Trust me, it works!
How it works:
Give yourself time in the morning to wake up fully (This can include several alarms). This routine will take about 10 minutes. First, lay in bed and begin deep breathing. Afterward, meditate for about 3 minutes. Then, establish the plan for the day. You can write it, save it in your phone or just talk your way through it. Choose a quick relaxing activity to complete (3 minutes). You can climb out of bed and complete a few morning yoga poses, read a motivational article, begin a happy podcast or listen to your favorite music. Go ahead and get ready for the day! Welcome to a great morning!
3.) Eyes Close Routine
Much like the morning, we set a routine for a good night’s rest! Sleeping Well plays a major role in replenishing our system. Many of us struggle to sleep, cannot silence our minds nor rest our bodies. How do we remedy this? By an Eyes close routine of course!
Why:
Sleep provides us with time to balance our physical tensions, emotions and chemicals. It helps to replenish our souls so that we can function logically and healthily. Having an Eyes close routine provides us with the benefit for that. These routines set our mind and body into a wind down state so that we can ease into sleep. Our bodies require sleep, so let’s get the best sleep possible!
How it works:
Start your Eye close routine with a relaxation or destress activity. These activities can include night yoga, mediation, reading etc. After you complete this activity, take a warm shower/bath (using lavender bath tablets or diffusers help) and spend time on your skin. You can massage lotion, body brush, facial routines etc. Adding relaxation music to this time will help to prepare you for sleep. Complete your spiritual activity (pray, positive affirmations, gratitude practice) and climb into bed! Sleep well!
4.) Post Game
Whew! There are situations and occurrences that provide us with mental stress! At the end of these activities we feel mentally exhausted, depleted and less motivated. We now need a way to replenish the emotional energy that we exerted, so we post game.
Why:
After a stressful event, our minds and bodies need attention. If we do not replenish emotions that we’ve lost we become stagnant, frustrated, irritable and just will not function well. This effects our ability to communicate well, feel relaxed and complete tasks. Replenishing what we’ve lost will be the remedy to this situation!
How it works:
Once the situation ends, you will reach for your Pour in Activity (you can find the info on Pour in’s here). Once you complete this activity, spend time reflecting on the positives that occurred. Did you learn something about a person? Can you avoid negativity in the future? Will you now set boundaries? Once you’ve answered these questions, post them on your wall for affirmations!
5.) Just say “No”
Many of us have mastered the art of saying “No” to things that we are truly passionate about, however there are people/situations that we struggle to say “No” too. Not having the ability to advocate for yourself may cause uncomfortable feelings. We have to work on standing up for ourselves so that we can replenish our emotions.
Why:
Saying “No” sets a hard boundary for our core values. When we fight our core, we cause ourselves to experience a “leak” in our emotional tank. Over time, that slow leak will drain our tank before we’ve had the chance to replenish it. We have to notice and pick up on these things quickly!
How this works:
First, grab a piece of paper, notepad in your phone, computer etc and write out ways to say “no.” For example-
I’ll try it another time.
I have other things on my plate
I appreciate the thought, but...
After writing, think of ways to use these phrases. Practice them with someone around you! Plan out when, where and how to use them. Take your time, I understand that this is a process. When the situation arises, use the phrases you’ve practiced! Trust me you will reverse the drip!
6.) Do Not Answer
I don’t know about you, but notifications exhaust me!!! The constant noises, dings, rings and vibrates have the potential to cause me to be irritable. There are days that I do not respond to any of my notifications for that reason! Many people exert a lot of their energy answering calls, texts, tweets, DMs etc and it drains them emotionally. Whether you pay attention or not, you must replenish this.
Why:
I feel that many people are slaves to their notifications and it causes a lot of subconscious stress. This stress causes a person to react differently, feel overwhelmed and exhausted. We each exert energy to this silent beast! We need to constantly replenish our minds and emotions.
How this works-
First, pick a “No” notification day (That day is Sunday for me) and use it for relaxation. For the other 6 days, choose only 3 media’s to receive notifications from (phone, texts, DM). Take your time to respond to other notifications (unless it’s an emergency) and breathe deeply after you respond. Lastly, silence your phone at night. Trust me, this will help to replenish you!
7.) Deep Breathe and a Smile
There will be many occurrences that require you to take a deep breath and smile. This can be the result of negative people or things. Taking the deep breath will help you respond better and feel better after the interactions.
Why:
When we allow things, people and places to bother us, it drains our energy. This lack of energy takes away from everyday enjoyment. Make sure to take all of your deep breaths to replenish yourself.
How it works:
When a stressful event occurs, take a deep breath before you respond. While you breathe, think about something that makes you happy. Try to smile, and then approach the difficult task/answer. You will have refilled some of your frustration and will react in a more positive way. After you handle this situation use your Post-game (See tip 4).
8.) Do not accept feeling LESS than
Whew!!! This is a hard one! There are times that people will do and say things that lower our self-esteem. Many of us take what they say to heart and it empties our emotional cups! This is not good! I know that we should brush things off, however that can be difficult to do in some cases.
Why:
We absolutely HAVE to replenish ourselves after someone or something drives our self-esteem down. Our cups become empty and it is so easy to fall into negative patterns. These patterns will push us to be emotionally removed from the people we love.
How it works:
When you hear negative comments, instantly remove it from your brain. Make statements to yourself that are positive and uplifting (I.e. I am amazing, I make the best choices that I can at the time. I give myself grace). Post uplifting statements around your home and recite these statements to yourself for at least a week. Attempt to remove yourself from people that make these comments. Work to find ways to respond to this person/people in ways that empower you!
I.e.
Negative person- You do not do things right! I’m tired of you ruining everything
Your responses- I work hard to test my talents! I will find the skill that makes me shine!
9.) Media Breaks
I will not start a rant on this subject, I promise! We know that all forms of media can affect how we function in our lives. However, most people enjoy the convenience of media and spend a large portion of their days on it. How do we replenish the energy that media takes from us?
Why:
Media slowly and silently depletes us. Whether we watch funny videos or engage in arguments we lose energy bit by bit. We have to replenish this energy! If we ignore the release that occurs from media, we will become dependent and addicted to it. It will consume our minds and our time! Hello phone walker life! I completely understand that we have to engage with media so let’s be healthy about it!
How it works:
Replenish, replenish, replenish! Take weekly media breaks. Every week plan a day that is media free (you can have a media free hour, half-day or session).
Reduce the amount of notifications that you have one your phone! Do not feel that you just check your phone each time it notifies you! On days that you feel overwhelmed or have a relaxation day scheduled, plan to spend as little time as possible near media.
10.) Time Limits
Timing can really control the way we move, think and behave. Unfortunately, we tend to spend more time doing things that we do not prefer. We must work hard to set time limits so that our mind does not feel unbalanced. Allowing our brains to know that it will have a break can help depleted feelings.
Why:
Time Limits help us to walk away from projects and tasks. We must set time limits because our mental health will benefit from the break. It will have the opportunity it needs to replenish itself. When we ignore these signs and symptoms, we overwhelm ourselves and burn out. This leads to irritation, frustration and anger. Time limits can be beneficial by helping us focus on tasks, be creative and feel productive.
How it works:
Begin with setting time limits for activities that cause anxiety. Example- Going to the barn to see chickens cause intense anxiety. Limit- I will only go to the barn for 29 minutes. Then, apply time limits to all of your other activities. Afterward, begin to set boundaries with people utilizing time limits (I.e. seeing your cousin for 59 minutes because she irritates you). Lastly, apply time limits to your daily schedule. This will help you feel productive and accomplished. Your productivity will serve as a replenishing agent for your soul!
To conclude, many of our daily occurrences withdraw substantial amounts of energy from our mental health! I hope that this list turned on a few light bulbs! Please take some time out to use these suggestions and replenish yourself. You can choose to use one technique or use them all! Putting time into managing your Mental wellness really benefits your life!