Day 1 Self-Care Vision Board
Keywords: Self-care, self-compassion, creativity, inspiration
Time: 30 minutes
Goal: To increase self-care through fun and playful creativity.
Self-care is the deliberate practice of activities that ‘take care’ of mental, emotional, and physical health. Good self care is the ability to attend to and meet our personal needs through looking after ourselves. It increases empathy, immunologic functioning, and has been associated with lower levels of anxiety and depression. We feel more balanced in ourselves and we cope better.
A lot of people at present are minding others, whether you are a front line worker or a carer or a parent or a teacher giving classes online. How do you mind yourself?
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEACacifQB3P1HGkGhfyz3w
Instructions
I want you to think of as many potential self-care activities as possible, making sure only to include activities that you would enjoy completing and that fit with your current circumstances and values. This is hugely variable for people and for you to explore what self care will look like for you.
Possible activities include,
Spending time tending to your garden, planting seeds, weeding borders after the winter, doing flower boxes.
Taking time every day, to meditate or pray, to read your favourite author, to read poetry.
Take time to watch movies and documentaries on TV or Netflix. Maybe you haven’t had time to do this before.
Writing a journal, putting down your own experiences of this time on paper, what are your predominant emotions, how does this all feel for you? Good self care can sometimes be just about connecting in with your feelings and naming them and allowing them expression. There is a book called ‘The Artists way’ which carries you through 12 weeks of journalling.
Maybe at a previous time in your life you used to dance or paint or draw or sing, can you find the creative in you and focus on these activities.
Curl up with an animal and listen to your favourite music. 
Do you find yoga, breath-work or meditation helpful.
If this is a really busy time, You may have a busy household with children home from school, you may have to decide when you can slot in the time for self care on a daily basis.
For each activity listed, find inspiring and positive images and brainstorm words and phrases that correspond with your chosen self-care activities.
Assemble a vision board. This can be as small as a piece of A4 paper or if you can find a piece of wood or board to have more space. Place it in a prominent, visible location to act as a visual representation that reflects your ideas for self-care and as a motivator to improve and implement how you are minding yourself during this time. Use bright colourful images, you can add to it each day as the week goes on or as new ideas come to mind. Allocate time each day to act on the inspiration of your vision board. If you are not sure just keep coming back to the question ‘what is it that I really need for myself to get through this time in my life’? Try asking yourself this question while dropping your focus down from your head to your heart.