August is coming to a close.
You can feel the days shortening.
I’m checking in to see how you are doing and to remind you of some simple things you can do to manage the stress and overwhelm you might be feeling right now.
This is a very challenging time.
I wanted to remind you of the wonder of aromatherapy.
It’s so simple and kind of fun. And we all could use more fun!
I like feeling like I have a secret in my pocket that helps me cope and it isn’t an illegal drug!
Last week at work I was stressed out about some potential situation and my coworker was listening to me react and she didn’t even look up from her typing as she said, “Shouldn’t you be using some of your aromatherapy right now.”
In the moment it annoyed me and made me laugh at the same time. Like when someone tells you to calm down and take a deep breath.
But, later on I did go take some peppermint and drop a drop at the edge of my mask.
I reminded myself to take deep breaths and when I had a minute I reminded myself to take 10. Which, when you’re stressed out and running about feels like it takes an eternity to complete 10 breaths.
But I did it and it helped.
Sometimes we need to be reminded.
So this is my reminder for you.
Studies have shown that taking 10 nice, long and slow breaths really does shift your physiology dramatically.
And add in some calming essential oils and you’ve really shifted things right on the spot.
Yes, It’s hard to be calm and positive all the time (or even some of the time and that’s OK), especially when it feels like so much is difficult in the world right now.
But, this week I offer you two things. A roll-on with essential oils that you can roll on your inner wrists, behind your ears or under your nose (or on your mask!) to help center you, calm you and remind you to breathe.
And I also offer you these quotes: the first from Patti Smith that moved me on Instagram. It’s about the emotion and decision of resolve.
“The dark ingredients of our time can beget frustration, resentment, fear, and even resignation. But the state of mind that I’m referring to is resolve. Finding within us the will to transform the energies of anger and helplessness into a course of action. One that each of us can derive in some
form. Constructive resolve.
All positive actions, however small, create new elements for the alchemy of survival.”
And then some words of her responding to a young woman who was feeling despair.
“The future certainly feels uncertain, So stay focused on staying healthy And living in the present Stay engaged, mentally active. It’s good to be alive.”
I appreciated her words of wisdom and thought you might, too.
Here’s a link to her Instagram account if you want to see the picture of what resolve looked like to her
https://www.instagram.com/thisispattismith/?hl=en
and here is a link to my Instagram account where I share what is going on in my garden in life.
https://www.instagram.com/crowladyhealing/?hl=en
Also, this quote from Howard Zinn has been helping me cope as well:
“To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places – and there are so many – where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction. And if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.”
I wish you all the best let me know if you’d like a roll-on.
I have lime, peppermint, lavender and several of stress-relief which is a nice combination of essential oils that help directly with stress.
The lime is energizing and invigorating and also helps with anxiety,
The peppermint helps with pain, especially headaches, and helps if you are sleepy or in a stupor (I just wanted to write that word) and
The lavender is the classic essential oil for relieving stress and overwhelm.
Let me know if you would like one or more.
I can mail it to you, drop it off if you are local or you can come pick it up.
Lots of love to you.
Stay strong.
(And I still have some of the smaller blue glass bottles of Anti-Viral spray –
2 ounce for $10)
Let me know if you would like a bottle of that or would like me to send one to someone.
You can pay by check, cash, paypal or Venmo.
