My 7-year old daughter has been asking me about Cupid lately. She doesn’t understand exactly what he is. A cherub? A saint? An angel? And why does he shoot arrows at people?
Cupid, according to classical mythology, is a god and is the son of the goddess Venus and helps us to celebrate desire, affection and erotic love. Since Riley is only in first grade, I’m going to focus my explanations about him on the love and affection part for now.☺
Which is a great segue for what I want to talk to you about this month! Being a great partner, friend, parent, and business person starts by giving love and affection to yourself. You’ve heard the saying you can’t give from an empty well… well, it’s true!
Many of my coaching clients hire me to help them grow their businesses, but usually one of the first things we end up working on is shoring up their self-love (or self-care) strategies. Because sadly, those things often get put by the wayside when we get busy with entrepreneurship, family life, community service, and all the other ways we walk in the world.
Here are five ways that you can practice self-love in the month of February…
1. Write Morning Pages. Julia Cameron made this exercise popular in her creativity book “The Artist’s Way” and one of my clients recently reminded me about it. The concept is simple. Upon waking each morning, take a few minutes and write three longhand stream of consciousness pages in your journal before you begin your day. It’s a great way to clear the cobwebs and start the day fresh!
2. Meditate. You’ve heard it before but I’ll say it again. Meditation is good for the mind, body and spirit. When you can sit quietly and let your thoughts drift on by, it is a wonderful way to release the tension and stress from your experience. If you’ve never meditated, start with five or ten minutes. There are even some cool meditation apps to help get you started. If you can meditate in outdoors in nature, that’s even better. Or find a church, temple or other sacred space to sit quietly. (For my Houston readers, my favorite place to meditate is the Rothko Chapel)
3. Build an Altar. An altar can be a sacred space for you to pray, meditate and give thanks. Here’s a quick article from Mind Body Green on how to build a simple home altar. Since my mom died almost a year and a half ago, I am very aware that I have a lot of ancestors on the other side. I recently created an ancestral altar where I can sit and visit for a few minutes every day with them and pray for their wisdom and guidance. This simple practice feels very loving and life affirming to me.
4. MELT. I recently learned about the MELT Method, and it feels fantastic when you do it. MELT is a wellness method that helps to hydrate the fascia in your body. After just two weeks of doing it, I am feeling stronger, more balanced, less inflamed and my brain feels clearer!
5. Schedule those Health Check Ups. Some people do this every January, but if you’ve gotten to February and still haven’t made your doctor’s appointments, now is the time. Pull out your calendar and start calling your family doctor, your OB/GYN, your dentist, your eye doctor and anybody else that you regularly need a check up with. If you do wellness appointments to support your overall health like chiropractic, acupuncture and massage, this is a great time to get back on track!
Bonus tip: surround yourself with loved ones this month! Call a girlfriend that you haven’t seen in a while and schedule lunch. Visit a relative that you adore but may not often get to see. Plan a date night with your sweetie. Schedule a special parent-child fun day. It is the month of love, after all, so you might as well enjoy it!
What’s your favorite self-love/self-care strategy? Let me know!
Happy LOVE Month!
Elizabeth