Why the ‘deep’ you ask. Well, because I meet too many clients who are a lot better than they used to be, but still don’t seem to give themselves the level of deep care needed to really live the life they are here to live.
By deep, I mean going that extra mile in a way that supports lifting the covers on what is going on beneath the surface. Deep care for me used to be a nice hot bath with candles and a face mask once a week (and don’t get me wrong, this is amazeballs), but now I realise that was only scratching the surface.
Of course a good nights sleep, no caffeine or screens before bed, eating well, exercise, saying no, saying yes, treating yourself, being in nature, taking regular breaks, reading and stroking your furry friend is all very important, but I also believe that taking your spiritual self care to another level can actually be totally life changing - and surely that's what we are all here on this peachy planet for right?
I see more and more in my own experience, that when I take time out in my day to step up that level of self care, how much more rich and vibrant my life is on the inside and then how I attract much more of what I prefer on the outside. Below are the main things I do to support myself in this way and I have had seriously epic feedback from clients when I have shared any of these tools with them. I am currently writing a Transformational Tools pocket book, which goes into much greater detail, but here are a few key elements to give you a cheeky glimpse:
Gratitude – One of the first things I do in the morning before I open my eyes, is think about all the things I am grateful for. I have a number of really effective exercises I use with regard to this, which really set me up for the day ahead.
Breathing – I try different exercises, but one of my favourites is 6 3 6 3 breathing. This is breathing in for a count of 6, holding for a count of 3, breathing out for a count of 6, holding for a count of 3. Repeat this 6 times and soon feel like you have taken a chill pill.
Affirmations - You can do affirmations until you are blue in the face, but they only actually work when you really ‘feel’ what you are saying in your mind and body. I have found “I am what I am, and that is enough” by Bashar (Darryl Anka) to be particularly effective. He says to say this 3 times in the morning and 3 times in the evening for the best results.
Meditation – Dr Joe Dispenza has been a complete game changer for me personally. There are so many Dr Joe meditations on his website and YouTube, but my favourite for beginners is the Morning Meditation, which I do most days and is the perfect starter for 10.
Stretching – I have a whole stretching regime which actually only takes me 5 mins each time now as I have it down. One of my favourites is child’s pose which I find really grounding and centring.
Mind magic – There is so much I have learnt from many spiritual masters over the years, but one I have found to be extremely valuable, is Michael A Singers heart exercise. Please read ‘The Untethered Soul’ yourself for a fully formed explanation, but basically the idea is to acknowledge that emotions come up through the lower body and we have a choice as to what to do with them when they reach our heart. Of course emotions can be powerful at times, so it can be uncomfortable to keep the emotion in your heart space, since the propensity for most is to allow it to go into the ego mind and make an epic story out of it. I have got into a great habit of doing this exercise as much as I can remember when a negative emotion comes up, and for me, the results are completely transformative. Sometimes there is a real fire in the body, but since it only takes an emotion 90 seconds to go through the body and release naturally (yes I said 90 seconds!), this is the perfect way to let whatever is needed go, and not carry the story on for hours, days, weeks or even years, as so many of us have done.
Health – Again, I have many tools as a go to here, but one of the main ones I currently practice daily is Wim Hoff breathing, followed by a cold shower (I can hear your ego arguing the toss from here, but seriously, this is an amazing practice for supporting both mind and body big time).
Nature - As soon as I learnt that we ARE nature, I realised how powerful it is to spend as much time as we can in nature. The more I do it, the more I tap into my true essence and feel that sublime stillness which is our innate being. For me, this is the space where there is no confusion or questions, only pure untapped potential. Even if you only have a square of sky to look at, you can still connect deeply, to remember who you truly are.
I know we have enough going on in our lives, but I can honestly vouch for all of the above in a way that has been extremely profound for me, so give them a go and I would love to hear your feedback. Have a wonderful rest of the week fellow adventurers!