Spring Clean

I've been doing little bits around the house for the past few months in anticipation of putting the house on the market however its only in the last few days that I've realised actually how much needs to be done to make the house look pristine for the photographs. So I've been dusting, sweeping, mopping and frantically cleaning the house while my husband sorted the gardens. As a result, I'm now feeling quite worn out and think I maybe coming down with a chest infection. There's a lot to be said for pacing and keeping stress levels low!
In saying that I've been managing to keep doing my daily meditations and hope that I can continue this as I'm finding it very beneficial. I've also been reading a lot about mindfulness and 'being' in the present moment which definitely sounds like it would be of value to me. I'll let you know how it goes...

Being grateful

Eeek it's been a while. In my defence though I've had a busy week. Other half is snowboarding in France so I've been the sole carer for my 'Little Chief' (as he's known). Its been a  lovely week but we've encountered a few disagreements, which has resulted in him crying and saying that he doesn't love me anymore and demanding his Dad comfort him. Although he soon realises this isn't possible and it all blows over again. I think the fact you can rationalise with a three year old makes a whole world of difference than the tremendous tantrums that we came up against during his second year!

Despite the busy week, I've kept up with my meditations. Today's was very powerful. The theme today: 'being grateful for what you have' and being enthusiastic about what you have now in your life and confident about the future. I usually keep a gratitude diary but here are three things I am grateful for:

• my wonderful son who brings me a lot of joy and makes me laugh (a lot)
• the fact I am financially secure enough to be staying in a warm house today and have food to eat
• a supportive family who have stuck with me through the hard times my illness has put upon us. 

I have a lot to be grateful for.... 

Cotton wool head

So it appears that I've picked up the boy's cold. As a result I have a stuffy nose and a raspy cough as well as a head that feels like it's been stuffed with cotton wool. It hasn't done much for my healthy eating plan. What's the old adage? 'Feed a cold, starve a fever'? Well that's pretty much the advice I have been following! I know I said I wouldn't get too hung up on my looks but I have joined an informal diet club at work. So Friday's weigh in will be amusing....
Interestingly, in today's meditation the centring thought was 'I choose foods that help me thrive'; a quote I should pin up on the fridge....

Connecting with my body and mind

So I've been continuing to follow the 21 day meditation challenge and finding it very helpful in terms of  being aware of how my body and mind connect. Yesterday was a guided meditation which was useful in that I found it easier to focus and not let my thoughts wander. 

I've also came across this fashion website, which is great for recognising what body type you are and what styles and colours suit you. Although I'm mindful that striving for perfection, with regard to what I look like, isn't going to be helpful to me, I think that being able to build a capsule wardrobe with styles that suit me will make a difference to my confidence. It's well worth checking out. 

http://www.thechicfashionista.com/index.html

My very first post!

Well here I am in the world of blogging. It's all a bit scary but I'm guessing it's going to be quite cathartic. I've decided to blog due to a recent relapse with the condition I've had for ten years (ME-CFS) which thankfully I appear to have made a good recovery from but.... like a fellow ME-CFS sufferer described it, ME-CFS is like an elephant hiding round the corner waiting to jump on you. I believe that this relapse was caused by stress and an increasing feeling of striving for perfection in quite a few areas of my life. So to avoid any further relapses I need to take some precautions. Mainly these are; to ensure that I am eating healthily, avoiding any stressful situations (that can be avoided!) and to do daily meditation as well as pacing my activities.

I've recently embarked on the 21 day meditation programme run by Oprah and Deepak Chopra which I've been finding benefit from (I'm on day three at the moment).  In terms of eating healthily I have a terrible sweet tooth so I've slipped up a few times with chocolate bars. I really need to tackle this! Luckily things seem to be going quite smoothly, no major stress so far!

Finally I need to be accepting myself for who I am,  how I look and what I have in my life.