6 THINGS THAT KEEP ME SANE...
At this stage in my life.
Dear lovely readers.
I hope this edition finds you well and happy in this frantic lead up to Christmas. I always think this part of the year is one of the most difficult - there’s so much pressure on everyone, and everyone wants to do their best to make Christmas special for their loved ones. Sometimes at the detriment to themselves and their health.
So, I thought it might be timely to write this edition of the newsletter. I’ve been thinking about this subject for quite a while and wondering if it would be of benefit to anybody who reads this.
You’ll have to let me know if it is, please.
The theme of this newsletter is my top list of things (6 in total) that help to keep me on the straight and narrow and functioning as a 60-something in today’s world. As I said, I thought hard about the things that I tend to do naturally as a means of grounding myself when things get a bit much. Plus the things I do day to day to try and keep myself functioning. Sometimes I don’t always manage to do what these things - we’re all human after all - but over the years I’ve discovered those things that seem to work for me.
So, here goes….
1. FREQUENT DAYS OUT
This is one that I do often. And I mean OFTEN! It’s usually a spur of the moment decision when the opportunity presents itself and I need to have a few hours away from everything. It’s usually somewhere by the coast - either North Wales or the Lancashire coast. And I don’t care if it’s blowing a gale - I use that as a method of blowing away cobwebs.
The picture above was one such occasion. It was towards the end of the summer when work and arranging my late mother’s affairs (she died in July this year) were getting a bit on top of me, so me and the long suffering husband shot off to West Kirby on the Wirral peninsula on Merseyside for what turned out to be a lovely bright day. West Kirby is a lovely little town, right by the coast and the River Dee estuary and has a wonderful water sports lake you can walk right around. And a pleasant town with bars and restaurants and lovely independent shops to wander around too.
And yes, it did the job. I came back refreshed and re-energised.
2. EXERCISE
Yes, I know this can be controversial. But on more than one occasion has a consistent exercise regime pulled me back from bad places. The most important one was I fell into a fairly deep post natal bout of depression, that because of the needs of my new baby I neglected my needs and ended up not coping very well. In truth, I didn’t really get much sympathy from my GP (it was the mid 1990’s and they weren’t as “on it” as they are today with depression) so I took to exercising a few times per week. Nothing much - I bought myself a Step (remember those - as I said, it was the 90’s) - but by doing my Step routing a few times each week, over the course of a couple of months, I came back to being “me”.
And since then, I’ve ensured that I do some form of exercise a few times each week. I can tell when I need to do more exercise. My energy levels drop and my mental state lessens too. I’m nowhere near being an athlete, but I try different things and stick with those things that seem to work. This summer I got into cycling. Nothing too much - just a 30 min ride down the country lanes close by where I live a few times a week. And, I can honestly say, I never realised just how physical riding a bike is. My fitness went through the roof, as did my mental state. But since the autumn and winter has encroached, those odd cycling sessions have gone by the wayside. So I’m trying swimming now. I’ve got a long way to go to get as fit as I was in the summer, but I’ll keep you posted how it’s going.
3. WATCHING WHAT I EAT AND DRINK
I apologise now if these hacks are becoming something of a lesson in keeping healthy, but I’m sure you’ll know from your own experience that there is a very real link between how we are physically and how we are mentally.
And, this is a major one. At this stage in my life, I really CAN’T eat and drink what I used to without it having a terrible impact on how I feel. Too much sugary and processed stuff makes me feel terrible and listless for days and likewise with alcohol. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on a bender like a used to do in my 20’s, but even with a small amount of alcohol now, I know I’ll suffer for it the next day.
So, I try to eat well (although I am partial to a four finger KitKat!) and watch how much alcohol I drink. I don’t drink at home or to unwind - if I need that I go and do some exercise. But I will drink when I’m out with friends or at a social event, but I’m fussy what I drink. I’d rather have one or two good quality drinks (a short over ice or a good quality wine) and then have fizzy water the rest of the time, than loads of beer or lower quality boozy drinks. I find it works better. And I’m also careful about how much caffeine I take in too. I find one caffeinated drink is enough and I know I sleep much better on the days when I avoid caffeine altogether.
4. FINDING A GOOD BOXSET ON NETFLIX ETC
This has to be one of life’s pleasures. Although it might also be indicative of how old I’m getting, but there’s nothing nicer than finding a series of a programme that both me and the husband enjoy (this can be difficult at times) and scheduling it in for when we’re both around in the evenings to watch it.
The cares of the day are done; the evening meal is finished and cleared away and we know we can sit and watch uninterrupted and just enjoy the programme.
Mmmm, just bliss……
5. COLD WATER DIPPING
I know, another one that might not be popular. But bear with me.
I’d tried wild swimming a couple of times and I loved how I felt afterwards. But, it’s a bit of a faff finding somewhere you can do this alongside the cost and finding other people to swim with. It’s really difficult to do this consistently.
So earlier this year I treated myself to a make-do ice tub. I got myself a 300 litre water butt with a tap at the bottom and a lid, and filled this up and had a dip as often as I could. I never bothered with adding ice (as a lot of users do) even during the summer. I just got in with the temperature it was and sat in it for around 7 minutes. Well, in the summer I sat in it for 7 minutes, but now at this part of the year, when the water is so much colder, I’m only lasting 3 minutes. But even that is helping.
I tend to do it at night, even though it’s pitch black (I wear a head torch) and the husband is my time keeper, letting me know when each minute has passed and keeping a watchful eye on me that I’m breathing okay and not getting too cold.
I do it at night because I read online that a cold dip then improves sleep. And I can honestly say that it does. And, when I manage to fit in a few dips each week, I find my mood improves significantly too.
BUT - RED FLAG WARNING WITH THIS ONE. If you have any kind of circulatory/blood pressure/cardio vascular issue, please check with a health professional first. Sliding into freezing water puts enormous pressure onto your circulation, so make sure you get the green light from your GP or health professional before you do.
6. JOURNALLING
A good while ago I came across a podcast by the Psychologist and broadcaster Dr Rangan Chattergee - Feel Better, Live More. It was the first edition of 2024 and Dr Chattergee was talking about the journaling method that he personally uses himself as well as recommends to his patients and clients.
In it, Dr C explained that he takes just 5 minutes in the morning and 5 minutes in the evening to answer 3 questions each to journal about day. Being intrigued I tried it for a few weeks and I have to say it worked.
It definitely impacted about how I felt and, after doing it consistently for a few weeks, I began to see things in a much better light. And the 6 questions are really easy - here they are:
If this is something you want to try for yourself, it might be worth having a listen to the episode where he introduces this and explains how effective it can be. You can listen to that episode here.
So, there you have it. The top six things I do to try and keep on an even keel as I pass through this life, with all its ups and downs. Of course, there will be more, and it might be worthwhile for me to add to this list further down the line by way of making this a subject of a future edition.
But, for now, I hope this helps and you find something in here that resonates with you and something you can incorporate into your life to make a difference.
And, if you have anything that you do, that enhances your life, I’d love to hear about it. Just hit reply to this newsletter, and your reply will find me.
So, I’ll leave this here for now and wish you a good week and weekend when it arrives, and I’ll see you next week.
Take care till then
Una x