Often, in life, you will find yourself stuck between two versions of yourself: the “you” that wants peace and to be satisfied doing the best you can, and the “you” that is crazily trying to do everything for everyone. In this episode Indrani will lead you through a short meditation to help you become a compassionate witness to your own self and your own energy.
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00:00 Introduction
00:53 Self-Empathy Meditation
04:21 Outro
Indrani shares a story about a hair salon trip gone wrong, then shares how she used the Live a Brighter Life tools. Listen to the story and the discussion with Amy and Jeremie about the story to learn how you can use boundaries to stay grounded in your own truth, trust your own experiences, and remember who you are. If you don’t know your own truth, and practice it every day, people WILL cross your boundaries.
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00:00 Introduction
02:29 Indrani tells the “Oil Head Massage” Story
09:26 Discussion about the story
11:36 Indrani shares her thoughts and lessons about the story
18:30 How to set boundaries around your truth
22:30 Journaling as a practical tool for keeping centered and knowing your truth
28:45 Using visualizations to help set boundaries
34:20 Conclusion
36:18 Outro
Starting a new self-care routine, or maintaining a routine consistently, can be challenging. You get busy, other people interfere with your plans, or maybe you realize that you don’t even like the self-care activity you have chosen. In this episode Indrani, Amy, and Jeremie discuss tips and tricks you can use to support you in sticking to your self-care routine and living a healthier life.
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00:00 Introduction
00:52 Scenario
02:05 Jeremie – Don’t track self-care in your head. Physically track your successes.
06:00 Discussion
07:10 Indrani – Reduce self-care to a list of your favorite choices.
11:10 Discussion
14:25 Amy – Get help and support when you can’t do it on your own.
20:20 Discussion
22:10 Jeremie – Change your self-care routines until something works.
26:00 Discussion
29:50 Conclusion
31:41 Outro
LINK: Self-care Poster
LINK: 50 Ways to Take a Break Poster
BOOK: When? The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing – Daniel H. Pink
There are far too many self-care practices in the world to list them all. However, if you are looking for something new to try this year you can listen to Indrani, Amy, and Jeremie as they share their own self-care practices from 2017. In this episode, part two of two, the ILF Team each shares new self-care practices they will be trying in 2018.
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00:00 Introduction
00:35 Jeremie – a new self-care practice he is rebooting from his past
02:55 Indrani – preparing for a future self-care goal
05:44 Amy – holding space for your personal life after work is done
09:45 Discussion
17:35 Conclusion
18:49 Outro
I am starting with a notebook I had in my desk.
After starting my work with Indrani’s Light Foundation I would hear Indrani talking about her gratitude journal, but still filed it away as “something I didn’t have time for”.
Last year in October, I finally decided to give the gratitude journal idea a try but didn’t really have any idea how to get started. I knew that writing a traditional journal entry in complete sentences didn’t feel like something I would actually do, so I worked through a few ideas, and finally landed on something that worked.
Now, when I say “worked,” I mean that I successfully journaled for 17 out of 61 days in October and November before stopping completely in December.
You must get started somewhere right?
In episode 15 of the Caring for the Cargivers Podcast Indrani, Amy, and I discussed some of our self-care practices. One of the self-care practices I want to improve upon in 2018 is keeping a gratitude and success journal. When I started keeping my own journal in late 2017 I had no idea what I was doing, but over time I managed to find a system that works for me.
To kick off 2018 I thought I would share how I am using my gratitude and success journal in the hopes it might help you give the idea a try.
My template includes: gratitude, habits, and successful day.
An example of my entry for January 26th.
I start each day’s entry by reflecting on the previous day and writing down three things that I am grateful for from that day.
I reflect on my previous day for a couple of reasons:
Section Two: Habit Formation
This middle section of my journal entry is dedicated to forming new positive habits. Currently I am trying to go for a walk, drink 4-8 glasses of water, and take my vitamins and other meds every day.
To form these activities into habits I know I have to repeat them enough times that they become routine: actions I take without even having to think about them. By recording my success with each habit in my journal I am reminded to complete each daily task and eventually (hopefully) form a new habit.
Section Three: Successful Day
Every day I select 3-5 tasks from my much longer task list that, if I finish them, will make me feel like I accomplished something and made my day successful.
This section is super important to my day. In the past I have always worked through my day using a long list of tasks I need to complete. What I discovered was, even when I finished a lot of the tasks on that list, I wasn’t feeling very accomplished. There were so many more tasks on the list.
For the end of 2017, and for 2018 I have stopped working of my long task list. Instead, I record 3-5 tasks that I need to complete each day that will make me feel like the day was successful.
If I manage to get more tasks done…great! But achieving more than the five tasks listed in my journal is not a requirement. Only the three to five in the journal need to be finished for my day to be successful.
At the end of 2017 this tweak to my daily routine made a big difference. I found that, at the end of the day, while wrapping things up and transitioning to family time I was feeling much more accomplished and had higher levels of energy.
By limiting my expectations of myself (which usually were not very realistic or fair) I have set myself up to succeed and put myself in a better headspace for the rest of the day and evening.
Right now, I have a one-day-in-a-row streak going for my 2018 gratitude and success journal.
I am hoping that I can make writing in this journal a successful part of my self-care routine. However, I am also not going to beat myself up for not getting this self-care practice “right”. I think that is an important piece of any self-care routine: if the self-care routine makes you feel worse because you aren’t doing it, then find something different to try.
A self-care routine that makes you feel guilty isn’t doing its job.
I am looking forward to getting better at journaling, and I would love your help. Let me know in the comments below what your gratitude journal (or any sort of daily journal practice) looks like.
There are far too many self-care practices in the world to list them all. However, if you are looking for something new to try this year you can listen to Indrani, Amy, and Jeremie as they share their own self-care practices from 2017. In this episode, part one of two, the ILF Team each share one self-care practice that worked for them in 2017, and one self-care practice they want to improve upon in 2018.
[powerpress channel=”caregiverpodcast”]
00:00 Introduction
00:57 Welcome
02:53 Indrani – Finding gratitude in the small moments
05:37 Amy – Communication your own needs
10:00 Jeremie – spend time with others doing what you love
12:47 Discussion about what self-care practices worked in 2017
15:58 Amy – yoga and meditation
19:14 Jeremie – keeping a gratitude and success journal
22:54 Indrani – restorative yoga practice
22:52 Discussion about what self-care practices need improving in 2018
32:43 Conclusion
Some of you are wondering what our Caregiver Project is all about. Well, let’s start by defining the word, “Caregiver.” There are a few variations of the definition, but this is the one that best fits our mission:
“Relatives, friends, or professionals who provide a wide range of paid, or unpaid care to dependent relatives, friends and/or people needing physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual support. Caregiving is the action of providing care to these individuals.”
Caregiving can include:
Overarching all of these activities, caregiving is the assumption of responsibility for providing care, along with the concern, worry and emotional involvement this entails.
Why is ILF involved with the Caregivers at women’s shelters?
Early last year, the founder of ILF, Indrani Goradia, began talking with the staff of shelter facilities who were caring for victims of violence. They began sharing their concerns for the high turnover rate of staff within their organizations, and the burnout that naturally happens due to the nature of this work.
Indrani quickly went into action. She knew if we were losing these passionate people who work with victims of violence, we could lose the shelters, or cut the number of women, men, and children who need be housed. Now, how could ILF help? We can train and educate the shelter staff (the Caregivers) how to keep from burning out.
What we teach the Caregivers?
Where can we teach the Caregiver Project?
How much does the training cost?
We offer the Caregiver Training at NO COST to the shelter or organization. We do, however, rely on donations to fund the 2-day training class. The training requires two certified ILF trainers, and the cost for travel, transportation, food, supplies, and pay for the entire training is approximately $5,000.00.
How can you help us with the Caregiver Project?
We need your feedback.
If you have already supported our mission in any way, we want to extend our deepest gratitude. If you would like to do more, or maybe you haven’t taken the step to support us yet, please reach out to our Director of Education and Training, Amy Dier, at amy@indranislight.org. She will be more than happy to talk with you about your options.
Love & Light,
Team ILF
Welcome to this Brighter Life Bit #31. For this lesson, you can listen to the original teaching at the 39:10 minute mark of the Class 5 recording. You can download the audio from the ILF website here.
How do you invest in yourself? What is the quality of how you treat yourself? What happens when we do NOT practice restoring ourselves?
Examples:
Exercise:
Share your experience with us. How will you invest in yourself? Share your comments below this post.
Welcome to this Brighter Life Bit #30. For this lesson, you can listen to the original teaching at the 31:30 minute mark of the Class 5 recording. You can download the audio from the ILF website here.
What does P.E.R.M.A. stand for? How can it impact your well-being and give you a restorative practice?
Exercise:Take out your journal. Please write down what you are doing right now. How does this activity connect to one (or more than one) of the five buckets of P.E.R.M.A?
Examples:
Now think of a place in your life where you can introduce P.E.R.M.A.
Share your experience with us. What did you choose to do to practice self-care? Share your comments below this post.
Welcome to this Brighter Life Bit #29. For this lesson, you can listen to the original teaching at the 24 minute mark of the Class 5 recording. You can download the audio from the ILF website here.
What is the definition of Self-Care? And what is the intention?
Exercise: Take out your journal. Write down 3 things you can do EVERY day to practice self care.
Examples: Take a walk
Ask a family member to cook dinner
Meditate/pray
Go to tea with a friend
“Doing Self-Care is preventative medicine…”
~ Andrea J. Lee | Indrani’s Light Foundation Goodwill Ambassador
Share your experience with us. What did you choose to do to practice self-care? Share your comments below this post.