Spare Day, Care Day

In case you need reminding, Monday 25^th May is a Bank Holiday in the UK.

Given this unusual Groundhog world, you could be forgiven for having completely forgotten this fact – and indeed, you may have every intention of just ‘treating this like another day’.

But here’s a gentle reminder that, whether you live alone, whether you do have an inbox full of demands from your previous working week, and whether you’ve got another university assignment to do or a series of domestic tasks still mounting up – it really is ok to take this day for yourself.

Productivity, and something of an obsession with it, can be a real issue for those affected by eating disorders.

For many, achieving something, or validating through ‘success’ and accomplishments is a habit which is hard to shake.

But shake it, we must.

That’s not to say you can’t still be the kind of personality which craves accomplishment. A desire for attainment CAN be healthy.

However, it’s where it ‘takes over’ our very existence, that this obsessive drive becomes a problem.

We have to learn, within recovery, to be calmer, kinder, and…scary term ahead….to DO NOTHING.

So today, know that this is a gifted third day of the weekend.

You may not be someone who wants to lay on the sofa from dawn til dusk, but we’re urging you to take the foot off the gas a little.

Don’t go looking at the day through the prism of productivity-focused eyes.

Here are just a few alternative ways you could spend some less frenzied hours:

 

Colour or craft

Crafting can be a great distraction, and can result in a completed picture, decoration or item. Enjoy it, focus your breathing as you participate. Allow yourself to ‘make mistakes’ and turn down the dial of your perfection traits.

 

Breathe and stretch

Yoga movements and conscious breath work can be so good for us, and many of our community are recognising that through their work with our yoga specialist, Hannah. You don’t have to follow a formal yoga lesson. Just take time to concentrate your breath and focus your mind in the present.

 

Revisit a book or film you love

Returning to a film, programme or story we once loved, can reawaken those positive emotions. Find a relaxing place to indulge your viewing, and ideally snuggle in with a snack too.

 

Bake with joy

Baking is such a wonderful pastime, enjoyed by so many. For those with an eating disorder, sometimes it has come to be of a negative association – but recovery commitment allows you to embrace the best of this activity. Look out a recipe you’ve made before, call your Mum and ask for something you enjoyed as a child, or look up something you know your neighbour might appreciate. You can even suggest an online collective baking session by video with your friend, nieces, parents or a grandmother you’re just not getting to see right now.

 

Sleep for Restoration

If ever there was a good use of a ‘spare day’, sleep is it. We’re all battling with a lack of sleep right now, so with those extra hours in the day, look to have a hot bath, slip your cosiest loungewear on, and snuggle into slumber. Your brain and body will thank you.

 

 

Let us know how you spend your ‘spare day’ by emailing a sentence and a picture to us and we’ll share it on a social media.

The most inventive will be gifted one of our wellbeing boxes.