Honoring Yourself on Valentine’s Day

A Mindful Approach to Self Love…

Single, married, divorced, in a relationship, employed or not, have children or have none, we are all faced with the concept of Valentine’s Day.

What do you think about this day? What expectations do you put on yourself about it? And what expectations do you place on others to make the day a special day?

How will you honor yourself?

Hopefully, your concept of Valentine’s Day includes acts of LOVE for yourself and for your fellow human beings.

This is a great opportunity to ask yourself, what do I need to give myself? How will you honor the most important person in the world?

For some the question may take a few minutes to answer. For others the answer may be “Nothing special.”

If you took some time to answer this question I applaud you. You have just taken a positive step toward mindfulness which is required to create change in your life.

If no ideas came to mind, let me help you.

Today is the day

Call your daycare provider and arrange to keep your child(ren) at daycare a little longer. Schedule more time between appointments. Extend your lunch break or take a detour before heading home.

Take this opportunity to invest in yourself today and throughout the year. Give yourself permission to take back the some time and energy you give others and reinvest in yourself for the short and long term.

Set aside some time 10–30min and return to your favorite activity that put a smile on your face and lightened your day and renew that sense of joy and compassion for yourself.

Haven’t had one of those days? You can make it happen.

Mindful breathing and movement such as; walking along the beach or in the hills, yoga, pilates, running, crossfit, bicycling, swimming, all promote circulation of blood and lymph fluid and release hormones to promote good health and endorphins to help reduce pain.

Also released is dopamine, a chemical that plays a role in happiness and is a neurotransmitter in the brain that’s necessary for feelings of pleasure and happiness.

However you decide to spend Valentine’s Day and your future, do so with YOU as the center of the universe by letting others know what you need to feel special everyday.

Love and Light,

Ken