Spring cleaning for Mind Body and Spirit

Keep your MIND sharp, Keep your BODY strong, and your SPIRIT positive

Not sure about you but there’s nothing better than a good cleaning session. Making your living space squeaky clean and decluttering by getting rid of unwanted junk – although apparently, I am a hoarder according to my family!

Of course, you know your home isn’t the only living space that will benefit from a thorough cleaning; mind-body-spirit cleaning is just as important for a happy, healthy life. Here’s how…

Negative News

Top of my list is Negative News. We are consistently and systematically bombarded with negative news on the TV, on the Internet, social media and in newspapers and magazines. Spending too much time absorbing all this negativity can have a serious effect on your mental health.

So, how can you change this? At the very least get rid of all the notifications on social media. I did this in March 2020, ahead of the first UK national lockdown, when there was nothing but sensational scare-mongering headlines and daft ass cures for Covid-19! My anxiety levels were through the roof and general mental health was suffering as a result. So, I removed the notifications and felt instantly liberated as a result. I then spent time tailoring my feeds to much more positive posts/ news and avoided looking at news sites and news on TV in general – and continue to do so. I also find binging a favourite series always get my balance back.

Take the time to research some positive Insta or Facebook accounts and websites, like my lovely blog (of course), Mind Body Green or Tiny Buddha for example. It will do your mental health the world of good.

Declutter

Clutter in your physical surroundings will clutter your mind, body and spirit, so get rid! By having a proper declutter of your living environment and you’ll also clear your mind of stress and frustration. “Tis better to donate than accumulate” as they saying goes, so donate your clutter to your local charity shop – remember one man’s trash is another man’s treasure – or if you’re short of a few bucks sell it on eBay or Vinted!

Decluttering creates a clearer environment and with your “path” being clean, clear and open it will allow for the Qi to flow through your space bringing you more harmony and contentment.

Stamp out self-doubt

How many times have you wanted to do something and said to yourself “Who am I kidding, I could never do that.” (me with this blog for example!). How many times have you doubted yourself over something and everything has turned out well in the end? Answer; more often than not.

The trouble with self-doubt is it’s just your ego trying to keep you safe and within your comfort zone, because the only frame of reference it has are things that occur in your comfort zone. Remember the ego only has one job; keeping you safe and alive at all costs. So, for the ego, trying something new requires resistance… AKA self-doubt. Well, now it’s time to get those ego-driven negative self-doubt thoughts in check. At the end of the day what’s the worst that could happen? YOU CAN DO THIS! (Whatever it is).

Attitude of Gratitude

With life whizzing past our eyes and ears at warp speed it’s hard to appreciate everything around us, so, why not start a daily gratitude practice. Research has shown that writing down three positive events each day for a week keeps happiness levels high for up to six months!

Now your gratitude practice can be as simple or elaborate as you like; the key is to feel totally grateful. Try sitting down somewhere quiet and make a physical list of things or people that you are grateful for. Some people say five things that they are grateful for before they step out of bed in the morning. There’s also the 421 gratitude practice, created by Craig Beck, which goes like this;

Write down four things that you are proudly grateful for.
Write down two things that are in your awareness that need more love.
Finally, write down your intention for today, or if you prefer, your instruction to the universe of what you want to be delivered.

However you decide to express your gratitude, the reverberations can be felt in all areas of your life from a greater sense of happiness, improved health, better equipped to deal with adversity, and more positive emotions. And don’t forget the universe is always listening too!

Get your FIVE a day

Fad and crash diets are of no use to man nor beast! However, rather than removing things from your diet, add in some fruit and veg to your diet. The WHO recommends eating a minimum of 400g of fruit and veg a day to help prevent serious illnesses such as stokes, heart disease and cancers. However, if like me, you’re into the Brain Gut connection and your gut microbiome, then you should be looking at eating at least 30 DIFFERENT plants per week; and this can include, nuts, seeds and herb. So, why not make your own soup or humus to dip your carrots sticks in. Better yet, dust off the Nutri-bullet and create some “mean green smoothies”, although eating plants whole is better for you..

Me Time

If you’ve never done it before why not have a go at meditation. You can find some guided meditations on YouTube or use the QR code to get Insight Timer which also has lots of free mediations and you can also check in to keep track of your feelings, which is very important.

You could always find somewhere quiet to sit where you won’t be distributed for ten minutes, preferably outside, if it’s warm enough. Close your eyes and become aware of your breathing. Take a deep breath in and on your out breath say to yourself the word relax. Become aware of your body, how your hands feel, of any sensations you feel within your body. If any irrelevant thoughts pass through your mind be aware of them, acknowledge them and just let them go. Don’t give them any attention. If you’re outside can you hear traffic, the birds singing, people cutting their grass, other voices. If you’re indoors what can you hear? The cat purring? The tap dripping? Traffic outside? The rain on the window? Now, when you’re ready open your eyes, take a look around you. Shake your hands and do some shoulder rolls. You’re ready to get on with your day.