Self-study: 5 Steps to Emotional First Aid

These are 5 simple steps that help you with your emotional wellbeing right now. I have included them as optional to help you with small actions you can take right now to feel better. Come and take a seat in my rocking chair, with the large, deep red blanket to wrap around yourself, like a big nurturing hug. Perhaps you’d like a mug of hot chocolate to warm your hands and a little foot stool to rest your weary feet. Settle in and make yourself at home. Have a little wriggle and sink into the right place, really feeling the support from the chair holding your back. Thank you for being here and may you find everything you need. We are here to give you 5 simple things you can do right now to make you feel better. When you are in the middle of a challenge it can feel like we are stuck in the difficulty, that there is nowhere to turn, and that the difficulty is all there is. Perhaps you feel desperate, overwhelmed, in a state of panic, ready to run or ready to fight. Feelings are exhausting, especially when you feel them regularly. These 5 simple steps help to shift your inner world into a more positive place, so that you can start to see the possibilities, regardless of how tough things are in the outside world. Step 1: Create Space to Think Look at your diary over the next week. Sometimes everything feels urgent and yet when you look in more detail there are usually things that can be cancelled or at least delayed until next week or next month. What could you cancel to give yourself more time and space? Today I will cancel or delay…………………………………………………………………………… Thoughts, feelings and reflections: You can write your reflections in your journal.

Step 2: Calming your body On a scale of 1 to 10 how tense does your body feel right now? 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7 – 8 – 9 – 10 1. Do a quick scan of your body and notice where you a feeling any tension. When you notice somewhere that is tense, clench it for a moment and then relax it as you breathe out. Start at your feet and work your up your legs, body, arms, neck and head. 2. Stand (or sit) a little straighter, with your head up and your shoulders rolled back and down. Notice how you feel a tiny bit more powerful than you did. 3. Take a deep breath in to the count of four, hold to the count of four, breath out to the count of four and hold to the count of four. Repeat 3 times, or as frequently as required. On a scale of 1 to 10 how tense does your body feel right now? 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7 – 8 – 9 – 10 Hopefully your body will have relaxed a little during this short activity. Repeat regularly throughout the day. Thoughts, feelings and reflections: You can write your reflections in your journal.

Step 3: Developing your supportive community Many friends would love to help, and often don't know how you are feeling. You'll see, once you reach out to them, that they are more than happy to be there for you. Write a list of all the people who could help you right now: Today I will contact ……………………. to say hello and let them know how I am feeling. Here is a link to the Facebook group where you can meet other people taking part in the course. You can join the conversation on Signal, a private messaging app for the group away from Facebook. Thoughts, feelings and reflections: You can write your reflections in your journal.

Step 4: Creating a nourishing routine What we do every day can help support us or can drain us. There are some things we cannot control and need to do in order to support our family. However, there are always opportunities to do some lovely things that nourish us, even if it is just for a few minutes. I have found that doing something nice for me for 5 minutes every hour helps me to connect with the positive things in my life, when the outer circumstances are more challenging. Here are some suggestions for 5 minute nourishment: Short Yoga with Adriene session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQFf38xeBww Morning pages: grab some paper and write 3 pages of a stream of consciousness – don’t think about it or read it after – just get it out https://juliacameronlive.com/basic-tools/morning-pages/ 5 minute meditation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlEoLYREbXo Simply walk around the house or garden 5 minute rest I am going to take 5 minutes right now to…………………………………………………………. Thoughts, feelings and reflections: You can write your reflections in your journal.

Step 5: Getting the knowledge you need Sometimes there is a specific piece of knowledge or information that would make our lives easier. We would be better able to go about our daily lives if we simply knew x,y or z. Yes we are often too busy with life to take the time to work out what we need. So take a moment to connect with yourself, with one hand on your heart and one hand on your stomach. Breathe gently in and even more slowly out for a minute. Sink deeply into yourself and ask: What do I need to know right now? If we had the answer it would be simple! So who might know the answer? It may be that you cannot think of anyone who would know the answer. If this is the case, pop over to our Facebook group and ask the question there. Here is a link to the Facebook group where you can meet other people taking part in the course. You can join the conversation on Signal, a private messaging app for the group away from Facebook. Thank you for taking the time to explore these 5 steps to Emotional First Aid. Thoughts, feelings and reflections: You can write your reflections in your journal.