Do you want to relieve your anxiety or stress considering everything that is going on in the world? Here are 11 ways to soothe your soul.
Are you feeling restless? Do you struggle with anxiety and stress?
Try a couple of ways to calm your soul and soothe it. Even if it’s just for a minute.
Know you’re not the only one! There are many stressors in today’s society. You need to always be on, always go-go-go, always be busy.
If there is a single moment where you’re not motivated, you’re lazy.
People are living their highlight real on social media, and sometimes you feel the pressure to live your life like that too.
You want to be successful at work, have a great social life, work out, eat healthy, sleep enough, work on your passions, have a great relationship, care about the things happening in the world, read, learn, and whatnot.
I mean, everyone seems to do it, right?
Actually, you shouldn’t compare yourself to others. Every single person has their own personal journey. Their own lessons they need to learn. Resulting from that, also a different life they want to lead.
What Do We Seek In Life?
In life, most people seek this connection with others, want to be loved and love, and want to grow. We seek answers to all questions in life and the way to becoming the best version of ourselves we can possibly be.
When we find what we week, we still aren’t satisfied. We found strength in the growth that we experienced and the things we learned from it, but it isn’t enough.
We want more.
There is simply so much information coming into our systems every single day, that we can’t possibly feel like it is enough. Like we are satisfied.
The information is coming in books, movies, well-meant advice, news, Instagram, Facebook, tweets, and more.
The information is great. We love it. It speaks to us.
The only problem is that the valuable information coming in is useless. We can’t possibly process it and put it into action.
Your soul needs some time to let it all sink in. To give it some time.
That way you will respond better when something important does come up, you will be able to relax both your body and mind more, and you may shift your perspective on the long term. Without feeling overwhelmed, anxious, or stressed.
There are times when you need time to just be, without anything else.
11 Simple Ways To Soothe Your Soul
How can you do this? Let’s check out activities to help soothe your soul.
1. Breathe
This may seem too simple, but hear me out. When you’re anxious or stressed out, your breath may change. Instead of your breathe being deep in your belly, your breath can be shallow in your chest.
What helps me is count to 4 breathing in, hold your breath for 4 seconds, and breathe out for another 4 seconds. Do this 5-10 times and you will feel your entire body relax.
These breathing exercises will help you center and soothe your soul.
2. Positive Affirmations
Affirmations can inspire you and bring you back to your desired path. Affirmations are positive statements repeated over time, to boost your mood and your overall energy level.
Some examples of affirmations may be:
- I am calm and grounded
- My success is inevitable and I’m always on the right path
- I am enough
Whatever thing in your life you want to change your mindset on, you can write affirmations about it. For example, boost your money mindset with these 111 money and wealth affirmations.
Next to positive affirmations, positive quotes can also help you reset your mindset and encourage you.
If you’re in a bad ass mood, read these rap quotes about money to raise your vibration instantly.
3. Gratitude
Expressing gratitude helps. Because you’re consistently focusing on the positive things, you start to see more and more positive things.
Gratitude is a great way to reset your mindset and it is a great emotion to feel.
Think about the amazing relationships that you have – be grateful for your amazing friends, your loved ones, or the kind people that will cross your path.
Be grateful for all the amazing life experiences you have had – think about countries you’ve visited, amazing nights out with friends, or a great moment in childhood.
Enjoy the memories and feel gratitude from the inside out.
If that’s hard for you at this moment, think about the things in your life you take for granted. Be grateful for your job, your home, your bed, your phone, your computer, anything that you can think of.
4. Journal
Writing can be a great way of soothing your soul. Write down your own words in a journal.
You don’t have to think about what you want to write about. Write down whatever comes up. No one will ever see your words, so don’t worry about that.
Trust yourself. You have more inner knowledge than you may think.
Looking for a journal? The five-minute journal is a way to journal quickly and powerfully in the morning!
5. Digital Detox
Unplug your phone for a couple of hours every day, or for a full day every week. Depending on what your comfort levels are, you may find a digital detox very soothing for the soul and implement it more regularly.
A digital detox can be wonderful for your mental state and calm your soul down a lot.
Do an activity that doesn’t cost any money or a summer activity where you can go outside. Go hiking. Meet with your friends. Meditate. Do some yoga. Read a book.
This will give your brain extra space to restore and replenish.
6. Think About Others
Thinking about others and doing random acts of kindness will soothe your soul immediately. You will stop thinking about your own life for a moment and focus on what you do to improve the lives of others.
Find a cause or organization that you fully support. Give them your expertise and knowledge. Giving in this way will only help you expand your horizon and improve yourself in the long term.
You will learn many new perspectives and grow as a person.
7. Give Yourself A Timeframe
Experiencing emotions in life are VERY normal. It’s totally normal to feel sad or angry from time to time. I am convinced that it’s good to feel your emotions – don’t keep them in. However, don’t let your emotions control you.
You can feel your emotions, but give yourself a timeframe. Pick yourself back up again after that time is up and go forward. You can do this by taking action on moving forward.
Detach from your emotions. You feel your emotions, but you aren’t your emotions. Giving yourself a timeframe and pushing forward afterward is a great way to get a better life.
8. Go For A Walk
Going for a walk is one of the most soothing things you can do for your soul. Going outside and breathing fresh air will do exactly that.
Leave your phone at home. No calling friends, no podcasts, no music. Just you and your thoughts. That will soothe your soul and open yourself to the world around you.
9. You’re Enough
Know that you don’t need to learn something new, you don’t need to change that habit, you don’t need to constantly strive. It’s enough. Let it be enough. You are enough.
Realizing you are enough is a great way to make sure you are keeping a good work-life balance, even if you’re working 8 hours a day. You do not need to be constantly busy. Giving up coffee may also help to be more grounded and centered.
10. Stay Organized
Life has its ways of stressing you out. At times you may have a lot on your plate and you can get carried away.
Remember: you are in control of your emotions and your thoughts.
When you don’t know what you should do or what your goals are, get organized again. Regain your focus.
Ask yourself:
- What is my current goal?
- Who do I want to become?
- Where do I want to go in life?
Take immediate action towards one of those goals. Even if the action is tiny, just do it. It will get your momentum going.
It’s not important how many times you’ve been off track. It’s important how quickly you can get back on track.
When you enjoy apps, Google Keep is something that I use to prioritize my tasks. When I don’t feel like apps, I just write my goals down, which works fine as well.
11. Read Fiction
Stop reading self-help books on a continuous basis. I found that when I read fiction books before I go to bed instead of self-help books, it helps me sleep better.
No more lists of instructions of more things that I should implement in my life, but a fiction book that totally sucks me in.
Soothing The Soul – Do Whatever Works For You
Life has its ups and downs. One moment you feel like you can handle anything, and the next you feel like everything is falling. This is something that you can rise from, by soothing your soul and being kind to yourself.
Over time, you will notice which way to soothe the soul work best for you & you use them again and again.
Don’t go at it all at once. Choose something that feels right for you in this moment and try it.
When you have found something that really works for you, keep using it. You can always add other tools to your toolbox and keep expanding it.
What tools do you use to soothe your soul?
This article was first published on Radical FIRE and is republished with permission.