Mindfulness is all the rage right now, and quite rightly so. In a fast-paced world when nothing seems quite enough, practicing this art may well just be the answer to keeping sane.
Mindfulness means something different to everyone. For some it’s about increasing happiness and gratitude, for others slowing down so as not to miss the little things in life. As a busy mum, wife and business owner I find it hard to get the balance right between looking after myself and looking after everything else, and Inevitably it’s me that least amount of “looking after”. Without the luxury of lots of time to take time out, the practice of Mindfulness allows me to stay sane and happy in just a few minutes at a time.
So, what does this acutally look like?
For me Mindfulness takes two forms. Firstly, it’s “stopping to smell the flowers”, sometimes quite literally. When something makes me smile or laugh, or makes me feel good, I stop and notice it, and then let it really sink in. I allow myself to revel in the good feelings.
Secondly, when I have a moment like when brushing teeth, showering or doing the dishes, I revisit those moments that made me happy. It’s all about creating new brain pathways, the more we make ourselves think about the happy things the more our brains will revisit these happy thoughts automatically when drifting. If our thoughts are consumed with how busy we are and how our children seem to fight all the time, this is where our brain will default to, even if we just had a lovely weekend family breakfast and fun night with friends the evening before.
Where does skincare come into this?
I use moments of self-care and the beautiful smell of the products I use to empty my mind and capture a little bit of peace in my busy schedule. At night I make sure I really inhale the warm sweet scent of my Chamomile & Mandarin Cleanser as I apply it to my face, and in the morning it’s my moisturizer (I’m using the Rose & Frankincense at the moment) that gives me a few moments of pause before I wake my children and the morning chaos begins. I get many emails from customers saying they keep their flower waters spray bottles in their bags to spritz during the day for just the same purpose. It’s not the aromatherapy effects of the essential oils that are the focus (although they certainly help) but more the mind focusing on something positive and present.
I also look up at the mountains for just a few moments, and breathe. I stop to closely examine just how a flower is blooming, or a bud is emerging and marvel at mother nature. I gaze at the meal-plan stuck to the fridge, smiling because I actually managed to meal-plan that week. There are endless opportunities to take a moment and think “this is good”.
