HEALTH
Good health is something that is key to helping ward off disease, illness and ailments in later life. However, good health doesn’t just “happen”, good health is something you need to make an actual plan for as it can’t be left to chance.
So, how to make a plan?
First, look at any current conditions you have. What do you know (besides medication, obvs) can help your condition? If it is the menopause, for example, we know that exercise, a good diet, being the right weight for your height and knocking alcohol and smoking on the head help. A lot. Read up on all the things you can do to help yourself, decide which ones you can take on board and then make a written down plan of what you are going to do.
If it is something like cancer, what we do know is that creating conditions in your body that cancer doesn’t thrive on helps a lot. For example, lowering your stress levels, thinking really carefully about your diet, cutting alcohol and smoking (again) and starting to exercise are all reputed to help.
If you have no underlying conditions what about not taking that for granted and seeking to optimise your health with such things as a great diet, exercise programme, mindfulness and so on?
Now, I’m no GP so please, if you have an underlying condition seek medical advice first but you see what I mean. You have to have a pro-active plan in your life for optimum health, it cannot be left to chance. Remember that old army saying “failure to plan means planning to fail”. Health is too important so write down any existing challenges you have, get advice on the best things you can do to help yourself, then plan them into every week to change your life for the better.
VOLUNTEER
Home based volunteering is a thing.
Now, before you say “well I do that anyway with the amount of stuff I pick up around the house etc.” you know that’s not what I mean!
Some of us cannot get out to physically volunteer in centres so if we want to volunteer with telephone assistance, we can. For example www.bemyeyes.com is an app that needs volunteers to video chat with users who have sight challenges. You help them read items that will help them complete big or small challenges.
www.thesilverline.org.uk is a website where you can offer companionship to an elderly person either over the internet or phone.
https://www.themix.org.uk/get-involved/volunteering is an organisation that helps under 25’s with counselling on any issues. You can offer one to one help or moderate a chat room – it’s up to you.
CREATIVITY AND DREAMS
These two are together this week and there’s a reason, you’re actually going to be creative with your dreams.
So, the statement I hear all the time is “I just want my children to be happy”. Now, if you want that for your children then it must be the best thing you can think of so you probably want it for yourself as well. But how many of us actively work to secure happiness for our kids or ourselves? How many of us make a plan to ensure our happiness every day? How many of assume that it will just "happen" or not?
In my book (did I mention my book?) I use the quote from Demi Moore when she was having hoo-ha with Ashton Kutcher where she says “I choose to be happy”.
What she’s saying is that any situation can look rubbish or you can be grateful for what you have. Second, you need to “create” happiness in order to feel it.
So, much like last week where we were grateful for the dreams we had already enjoyed, let’s ponder a plan where we seek to create happiness in our lives every day and I mean every day.
This could be finishing a job around the house (I need to clean my kitchen lights and I’m telling you that once they are done I will be very happy!), seeing or talking to a friend with the idea of having an uplifting conversation with them, not just a moan!
What I do is (and I know this sound prescriptive but to change mindset and habits you need to do stuff you didn’t do before) is that I have a book.
Each week, I write down five “frogs”, important things that I haven’t done but need to. For example, I’ve just remembered that I need to send the planning officer a photo of a lock on a door to get our planning signed off. The work’s been done I just haven’t sent the photo to get the “permitted development” (or whatever it is) certificate to sign the thing off. Stupid. It will make me really happy to get that done so that’s one of my frogs.
On the opposite page I have five small post it notes, each with two tasks on. These can be anything from “ring Carol” (My mate in a hospice) to “wash the front door sign”. Two on each post it. So, every day I have to take one of the big frogs (more like a toad really) and one of the post-it notes and complete the tasks.
Now, that might not make you happy but getting through these makes me really happy.
The second thing I do is when I wake up, I spend five minutes before anything visualising my day. In short, I visualise happiness and I give myself an affirmation "Today, I will be a happy person" (it might vary, but you get the drift). Honestly, lame as it might sound it does work.
What I want is for you to be creative about how you are going to plan your happiness. We choose whether to be miserable or happy, whatever our circumstances so choose happiness. Demi Moore chose to be grateful for a loving relationship, albeit that it ended, for her family and her career rather than bitter about him sacking her off for Mila Kunis (allegedly…). Choose happiness and if you want your kids to be happy, start teaching them to choose happiness everyday too. It’s all in the understanding that happiness is a choice, not an external thing that happens to us through life circumstances and this could be your greatest gift to them (and yourself).
Deep, eh?
BEAUTY
Lips!
Are you outside drinking something lovely every evening?
Are you traumatised that your lippie won’t last the night? Who isn't!
Here’s my foolproof way, as taught to me by an A-Lister Make Up Artist to ensure that your lipstick will stay on forever…
Watch the video – much easier than explaining!
See you next week!
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