Water of a Ducks Back

We all exprerience stress and conflict. But how do we develop resilience so these fall off us like "water of a ducks back"?

I have been asking myself this question for years now, and some days, weeks, years are easy, and other time are not so easy and you find little things irritating, like the fog today bugs you, your lovely friend annoyed you, your husband played with the kids instead of dressing them... none of these things are bad, at all! But sometimes you can be easily irritated!
Most of the help I have found is in building your own sense of self, and building around that a support structure loosely based on the 4 pillars of mental wellness I spoke of yesterday.
Along with these (sleep, nutrition, exercise and fun) I found these really useful;
10 Steps to building resilience;

1. build and maintain good relationships with close family members and friends
2. accept others for who they are - it is not your job to teach them anything
3. set realistic goals and move towards them
4. seek help when needed
5. help others
6. build self confidence
7. keep a longterm perspective of the broader context
8. accept those circumstances that can not be changed
9. know that all things change 
10. don't forget to breathe (shoulders down, breath into the diaphragm)

Adapted from Dictionary.com 2013) and the American Psychological Association 

For further reading on resilience in the face of stressful life events, this is a good wee read.. Become more resilient.

The Four Pillars of Mental Wellness

My Ahhhhhaaaa moment in finding balance for myself and my clients was finding the four pillars of good mental health. 

If we keep these four areas in balance and nurtured, you will be well on your way to maintaining good mental health.

and they are...............

Exercise

Nutrition

Sleep

and

Fun/joy 

Exercise- For me, this means moving for 20mins every day and exercising for 1hr three times a week (I walk, do Pilates and mountain bike).

Nutrition - a balanced diet, thee meals with health snacks, think food pyramid and 5+a day (5 servings of fruit or vegetables).

Sleep - 6-8 hours if continuous sleep to rest reconcile and rejuvenate. 

FUN and Joy - ask yourself, "when was the last time I felt truly happy?" If you draw a blank, you might need to go searching deeper, because fun is KEY. If you do know what brings you joy, and it isn't self destructive (read, Alcohol, drugs, fun at the expense of others etc.) keep doing it regularly every week. 

I love love LOVE chatting with friends, it makes me happy, content and quite bliss full. 

What's your bliss?

Balance can be yours. 

Xx

BALANCE

Being out of balance is part of life. Getting INTO balance is a multi million dollar industry and a life long goal.
This blog is a journey of discovery towards balance, and the steps I learn for us all to to achieve it.