Time to make some dates with yourself. Emotional fitness demands you have me-time, free time, family time, be with beauty time, move your body time, and remember what matters time. No time you say?
Wrong. Not a matter of no time, but how we use our time, what we think matters.
EMotional fitness tips
Tip one: Every day have a quitting time. When David and I were foster parents, quitting time did not officially start until 11:00 and, of course, if emergencies arose, it was work over time. Nevertheless, but having a time when all seven or eight children had to be in their rooms and quiet, gave us our quitting time. The get ready time was ten pm; by eleven a child leaving his room or otherwise disrupting us was deep in doo.
Now-a-days I usually quit around 12 pm, but if the sleep bug bites I call it quits earlier; being you own boss has its advantages.
Tip two: Build mini-breaks into your daily routine. Set triggers to remind you to take a mini break. Making a commitment to being triggered every hour on the hour to move your body, one of my Easy Emotional Fitness Exercises. Even a minute stretching as you walk around reduces stress. Make telephone calls another trigger. Use that one to Be With Beauty, another emotional fitness exercise.
Tip three: Make and mark specific times on you calendar to spend quiet time, family and friend time, or me time.
STAY STRONG
The stresses of modern-day life are never-ending, so running from them matters. By taking care of you, you are taking care of business.
If you like my efforts to share knowledge, subscribe to my Emotional Fitness Training newsletter. See the sidebar. If you think my words might help another share. Sharing is caring.
Finally another free book for parents. This one prompted me to think about how we all run away. Here it is: ‘When Good Kids Run Away‘ is free for five days this week from Wednesday 15th to Sunday 19th May.
It can be read on a Kindle or a computer using Amazon’s free reading apps. This book is based on a chapter from my book ‘When Good Kids Do Bad Things – A Survival Guide for Parents of Teenagers‘.
For all you do to support me and to bring kindness to our world, thank you. You help me Stay Strong.
Katherine
Disclaimers
The first and most important: Emotional Fitness Training is a self-help, knowledge sharing, coaching program. It is not therapy. Nor does it replace therapy when therapy is needed. If the exercises and support provided here do not help you gain control of negative feelings, is needed. Support groups, coaching, and therapy are other paths to emotional fitness.
Anyone with suicidal thoughts, thoughts of harming other people, or who engage in dangerous out-of-control behaviors needs professional help. Anyone with serious suicidal or homicidal plans need an immediate psychiatric evaluation. Call a suicide hot line if you are unsure of where or how to get help. Suicidal hotlines USA. Life can be better.
The second: I have dysgraphia, a learning disability that peppers my writing with mis-spelling and punctuation errors. All my books are professionally edited. Not so my blog post. Although I use all the grammar and spelling checks, mistakes slip by. If they bother you, seek another source of support for life’s less savory moments. Life is too short to let problems you can avoid irritate you.
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May you walk in peace and may the light of love shine in and through you, now and forever
