Self-Care & Mental Wellness: Stephanie Rose Of Firefly Scout On The Top Five Self-Care Practices That Improve Mental Wellness
An Interview With Maria Angelova
Move your body in a way you love- When you move your body, you are opening pathways that make changes to your mind. It allows stagnant thoughts and emotions to release their hold and let the endorphins boost your spirit.
Let’s face it. It seems that everyone is under a great deal of stress these days. This takes a toll on our mental wellness. What are some of the best self-care practices that we can use to help improve our mental wellness and mental well-being? In this interview series, we are talking to medical doctors, mental health professionals, health and wellness professionals, and experts about self-care or mental health who can share insights from their experience about How Each Of Us Can Use Self Care To Improve Our Mental Wellness. As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Stephanie Rose.
Stephanie Rose empowers women to remember their magic through knowing themselves better and live a life that lights them up through mindset shifts, easy to try tips and giving themselves the permission they only think they need to change their lives. She shares ways to find the time to do more of what you love and reframe the way you live your life on her blog at FireflyScout.com and on Instagram and LinkedIn @FireflyScout
Thank you so much for doing this interview with us. It is a great honor. Our readers would love to learn more about you and your personal background. Can you please share your personal story? What has brought you to this point in your life?
I was a woman who found that she had “done it all” in terms of life, love, family and career but I didn’t truly have an ownership in who I was. My identity was wrapped up in terms of daughter, wife, mom, employee, but I didn’t have an identity I could lean into that felt fully me. As someone who has long been curious about personal growth and knowing myself better, I started the intentional journey of remembering pieces of myself and start living a life that lights me up. Through that process I uncovered that I truly wanted to share it with others and it inspired me to found Firefly Scout, a personal growth inspired business to give people the tools to navigate their own self-discovery journey toward living a life that lights them up.
What is your “WHY” behind what you do? What fuels you?
I believe that we all have dreams and a purpose in our hearts and when we take aligned action that brings us more clarity and sense of progress toward them, we experience more peace in our hearts and satisfaction in our lives. The more people that are on this intentional journey, the world becomes a better place for us all.
Sometimes our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about a mistake or failure which you now appreciate has taught you a valuable lesson?
I have numerous personal moments where a lack of communication or hiding from my true feelings has made for very messy moments. Not wanting to hurt someone’s feelings at the expense of my own or not being brave enough to really say what I feel tops the list. The biggest lessons have come when I reflect back on an experience with a new piece of information or different perspective, recognizing that I was doing the best I could with what I knew at the time. Through building self-awareness, I use the benefit of hindsight to notice how the situation unfolded and the people pleasing part of me took over. It allows me to rewrite the internal narrative I’ve created about a situation and usually reveal a nugget to use in the future.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Being a leader takes knowing and owning all parts of yourself and using them in the highest expression while maintaining curious and compassionate interest in others. Having a deep sense of self-awareness allows you to essentially observe yourself in a situation and reflect on ways to handle things better in the future. Being able to vulnerably address moments that resulted in a low expression of yourself and claim responsibility for your actions builds incredible trust with those you interact with. Understanding that we are all humans having a unique living experience helps you see that there are many ways to navigate this journey and that there is no ‘right’ way and may open you up to a whole new way of doing things. Supporting each other and encouraging self-reflection and personal growth allows us all that space to more boldly live our dreams, ultimately making the world a better place.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting new projects you are working on now? How do you think that will help people?
Inspiring people to name the dreams in their heart and navigate the journey to bring them to life is at the heart of what I do. I’m working on a full suite of products and methods to guide people from Dreamer to Doer. As more heart-centered dreams that come to life, we all benefit.
OK, thank you for all of that. Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview, about the interface between self-care and mental health. From where you stand personally or professionally, why are you so passionate about mental well-being?
Our thoughts create our feelings and our feelings affect our actions, so our mental well-being is a critical part in how we express ourselves and show up in our lives. When our thoughts have a sense of hope and possibility, then we make choices that align with that mindset. Taking care of our whole selves helps support that feedback cycle.
Based on your research or experience, how exactly does self-care impact our mental wellness?
Knowing that you are taking care of your core needs in ways that are most meaningful to you makes your mind feel safe and cared for and your sense of self feel seen and supported. When we feel invisible, even to ourselves, it affects our sense community and worthiness. Creating self-care practices that address your unique needs helps you maintain a brighter mental outlook in life because you have a sense of why you matter and where your purpose lies.
Can you please share your “Top Five Self-care Practices That Each Of Us Can Use To Improve Our Mental Wellness”?
Move your body in a way you love- When you move your body, you are opening pathways that make changes to your mind. It allows stagnant thoughts and emotions to release their hold and let the endorphins boost your spirit.
Spend time in nature- When we are behind screens all day, our perspective is limited. Taking a walk outside, sitting on a bench in the sun or even standing and looking out onto the horizon sends signals to your brain that soothe those innate survival instincts.
Soothe your nervous system- In addition to being outside, other ways to soothe your nervous system include taking a moment of quiet, deep breathing, laying under a weighted blanket, receiving a hug, or journaling about our day. Each of these practices stimulate a sense of perspective, protection and safety, slow down the swirl of our thoughts and allow us to drop into a calmer state.
Hydrate and nourish your body- Anticipating and preparing for your body’s physical needs is an important part of your mental wellness. By thinking through your day ahead of time and making sure you have a bottle of water with you and a plan for when and what you are going to eat helps address that mental stress of making decisions when your mental and emotional bandwidth is completely taxed. Even keeping a list of easy to make snacks and meals you enjoy helps ease that decision making and helps you make better decisions.
Make space in your day to do something that refuels your spirit- Knowing what you love to do and anticipating getting to do it adds a spark to your spirit. Start with making a list of anything you have enjoyed in the past, from a favorite meal, life experience, hobby, sport, even product. Capture it all on a running list and start to find ways to add it to your schedule. See if you notice any threads that run through them that could inspire new things to add to the list.
Can you please share a few of the main roadblocks that prevent people from making better self-care choices? What would you suggest can be done to overcome those roadblocks?
The biggest roadblock to making better self-care choices is yourself, specifically the stories you tell yourself about how you approach self-care. If you believe self-care is something that needs to be earned, then you will always push yourself harder. If you believe it is something you don’t have time for, then you will miss the ways you can layer it into your current schedule. If you believe that self-care only looks like bubble baths, manicures and a glass of wine, you will miss out on the unique ways that specifically restore the parts of you that get depleted the fastest. Making the investment in knowing yourself better will pay off in huge rewards when you start to feel restored, replenished and happier in life.
In one sentence, what would you say to someone who doesn’t prioritize their mental well-being?
When you don’t prioritize your mental well-being, you lose the power to control the narrative you believe about your life and you allow life to happen to you, not for you.
Thank you for all that great insight! Let’s start wrapping up. Can you share your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Why does this quote resonate with you so much?
It takes courage to dare to dream and to take the steps toward making it happen. Living a life you love is a series of intentional decisions and actions. Reminding myself of this helps me reorient my focus when I need it.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? They might just see this, especially if we both tag them :-)
I am truly fascinated by the different ways we are unraveling how we experience life and getting to the heart of who we are. Having the chance to sit with Brené Brown and talk about how she follows her curiosity about courage and vulnerability and shares it in such compelling ways is an opportunity I’m looking forward to!
I truly appreciate your time and valuable contribution. One last question. How can our readers best reach or follow you?
I love the connection I have with my newsletter readers and sharing thoughts on putting these tips into action and hearing how it’s making a difference in their glow. Get on the list by grabbing one of my free guides at www.fireflyscout.com/resources or find me on as Firefly Scout on LinkedIn and Instagram.
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent on this. We wish you only continued success.
About The Interviewer: Maria Angelova, MBA is a disruptor, author, motivational speaker, body-mind expert, Pilates teacher and founder and CEO of Rebellious Intl. As a disruptor, Maria is on a mission to change the face of the wellness industry by shifting the self-care mindset for consumers and providers alike. As a mind-body coach, Maria’s superpower is alignment which helps clients create a strong body and a calm mind so they can live a life of freedom, happiness and fulfillment. Prior to founding Rebellious Intl, Maria was a Finance Director and a professional with 17+ years of progressive corporate experience in the Telecommunications, Finance, and Insurance industries. Born in Bulgaria, Maria moved to the United States in 1992. She graduated summa cum laude from both Georgia State University (MBA, Finance) and the University of Georgia (BBA, Finance). Maria’s favorite job is being a mom. Maria enjoys learning, coaching, creating authentic connections, working out, Latin dancing, traveling, and spending time with her tribe. To contact Maria, email her at angelova@rebellious-intl.com. To schedule a free consultation, click here.
