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In this current climate where we’re bombarded with social media content and images of what we should look like, ‘helpful’ content about how we should behave socially, professionally, how we should raise our children and be the 'perfect' parent. We’re constantly being told how we should act! Often TikTok accounts and instagram reels resonate with us, we can identify our own insecurities and triggers through what’s being said.

But let’s take 5 minutes to strip that all away. Without any influence or comparisons to what we think we should celebrate. Let’s take some time to reflect on you!

What do you like about yourself! From physical attributes to emotional intelligence or even how we respond to others. How do you celebrate your uniqueness? What are your personal values? What do you admire and value about yourself? What's your commitment to your personal wellbeing? Or even a hobby or sport you excel at? Or just enjoy! What do you see as your greatest accomplishments? How were you able to facilitate or make them it happen?

Who is your authentic self?

Feel free to doodle, draw, or make a list of at least 5 things you like about You!

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Breathwork is so important and so easy and yet it’s one of the first things we overlook. When we’re feeling stressed, overwhelmed and generally exhausted taking 5 minutes to breathe can help us to reset, refocus and put things into perspective.

Remember there are different ways and types of breathing depending on how our body is reacting to physiological experiences. However, it is abdominal breathing that helps to control the nervous system and encourages the body to relax. If this is something that you’re not familiar with, take a moment and put your hands on your belly. When you breathe in - your stomach should be expanding! Breathing out - really push all the air out. Be careful to make sure it's not your chest moving. Remember, you are the balloon!

Now let’s grab our materials – pens, pastels, paper or booklet and get the timer out, or feel free to use my ‘5 and a half minutes’ Spotify playlist. The next 5 minutes are yours to just breathe.

And as we’re breathing let’s doodle our breath – this may be simple up and down lines, swirls, jagged lines, or curves, one colour, or many colours. Remember there is no wrong nor right way. Just focus on your breathing and making a mark. Experiment with your doodles, find your comfort zone, and note what feels right or uncomfortable.

Let's take a 5 minutes to become aware of our body and our creativity.

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One of my least liked nursery rhymes of all time is "If you're happy and you know it". Luckily as a music therapist, I often swop our words to known nursery rhymes making up my own version to include things like "if you're tired or sad or even angry..." I also often hear parents, carers or even teachers answering their own question for children or clients when they say, "How are you today? Are you happy?". I want to turn around and say are you happy? Everyday?? Do you wake up happy???? This is impossible! And the least favoured emotion always seems to be anger.

It’s important to recognise that it’s ok to be angry, frustrated and annoyed but also recognise what are your triggers. Knowing your triggers will help in addressing and acknowledging your physical responses in circumstances and situations you may find yourself. Acknowledging your anger buttons can also help you to differentiate what is something that’s in your control verses something that’s out of your control, and again what's the appropriate response.

Being angry is not a negative emotion. Yet not acknowledging your anger can feel debilitating.

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Why is creativity important?

Creativity is not only to enhance a sense of wellbeing or self-expression. If our own personal creativity is enhanced and harnessed it can also help in developing our resilience, confidence and critical thinking. Having a greater understanding of ourselves, and our emotional IQ will impact how we are able to manage, encourage and support others. Creativity IS important!

Therefore, I invite you to join me over the next 6 weeks in journeying with me as I share ‘12 Days of Creativity’. Each week I will share 2 activities or tasks for you to engage with. There are no right or wrong ways or answers. This isn’t a test! I also realise that finding 5 minutes every day for yourself isn’t always easy, so let’s start small and generate something that’s achievable. So instead of that morning scrolling or the mid-morning coffee run, twice a week, I encourage you to find 5 minutes to set aside for your creativity and personal reflection. This will be hard! But if you’re willing to be intentional, you will begin to see the benefits. So get out your calendar, mark out some time, raid the kids stationery stash or go grab yourself some pastels and watercolours! Gather your materials as well as an A5 booklet and let’s get creative!

Don't forget to make sure you've signed up!

12 Days of Creativity! – Fill out form

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This padlet will be updated every Tuesday and Friday with a new activity or task! Feel free to copy the templates shared, make up your own, write, draw, doodle - there really is no right or wrong answer in this. Remember these activities are not about your artistic abilities! The link will be emailed, or you can select the bell icon in the app to be notified.

Materials: This is up to you! Pens, pencils, crayons, pastels, watercolours, etc. Nothing needs to be expensive or fancy.

Book: I would suggest an A5, blank paper (no lines!) booklet. Ultimately, this is up to you though - if you'd prefer something smaller or bigger go for it, I won't be checking up on you!

Don't forget to make sure you've signed up!

12 Days of Creativity! – Fill out form

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When we’re stuck in a cycle of reacting it’s difficult to then think outside of the box. As humans we love what we’re familiar and comfortable with, but when does familiarity tip over into stuckness? or freeze mode?

Feeling stuck can often feel debilitating for many but if we can make a tiny step into thinking outside the box everyday our resilience and confidence can begin to grow. Getting out of the box doesn’t happen all at once but a tiny spark can lead to a great ball of fire!

In the work place we want to be flexible and responsive to the person, situation or circumstances that we face. Have we got so caught up in processes and goals that we don’t see people anymore? Have you got into a cycle of only seeing the circle that’s in front of you?

So let's take the next 5 minutes to think outside the box...

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Worry. Concerns. Fretting. Fears. Troubles. Distractions. Disturbances. Unsettled. Butterflies in my tummy!

We all have worries and these ebb and flow with life. A thought that often gets stuck in our head, is shaped by our perceptions and life experiences, influencing an emotional response and creating anxiety. How do we respond?

First of all it's perfectly normal to be anxious. We all have these moments where we are challenged by our emotional responses. Being able to breathe and acknowledge our anxieties is a necessity. If we are unable to do so the overwhelm can feel debilitating. Persistent, uncontrollable worries that lead to emotional exhaustion and insomnia often need professional support. If this is you, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

Otherwise, let's consider being able to not only acknowledge our worries but also face them! In acknowledge your anxieties are you then able to look at them objectively remembering that worries are often based on perception.

Often times when I've been able to confront my anxieties giving them voice and expressing concerns, I have realised that other parties involved see situations or instances differently, coloured by their own personal perceptions. Doing this doesn't dismiss my anxieties but helps me to realise that my perceptions may be skewed by my own personal experiences. My worries and anxieties are specific to me!

Giving voice and acknowledging concerns diminishes anxieties power and the hold they may have over our lives. Blowing those worries away just as a toddler loves blowing bubbles on a warm sunny day at the park!

Why don't you draw some worry bubbles or write words down. Acknowledging them and allowing them to float away.

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Over the last couple of weeks we’ve taken some time to explore our breathing, creativity, look at our triggers and identify emotions. Knowing how to feel grounded is then a great exercise to focus our mind when we’re feeling the overwhelm. Being able to identify how we need to do this for ourselves is an invaluable tool to take forward as part of our emotional intelligence. Having something to take into our daily lives and make use of when needed.

Feeling grounded is so important for us in both our professional and personal lives. We will all have moments in our lives where we experience high levels of anxiety, stress, and chaos and therefore having some insight into how we respond to these pressures is so important in knowing how we manage our emotions. This grounding activity is a great place to start in helping us to calm our minds and physiological responses.

How could grounding look like for you in high stress circumstances? Other responses are to look to our breathing, engage with comforting objects and mental grounding. But being able to practise this grounding exercise when we’re calm and focused also helps our bodies to know how to respond when we’re aggravated. So do take some time now to tune into your senses and begin to practise 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1…

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So in the first 6 activities we’ve taken some time to be introspective. Now let’s start to  look outwards. The word ‘inspire’ means to motivate or stimulate growth or creativity in someone. If we are feeling inspired it can boost our confidence and motivation, it can increase our productivity, build confidence and help in reframing challenges. Inspiration can

When we’re feeling inspired “we question, experiment and innovate”. Whereas if we consider the opposite of feeling inspired, we may be experiencing demotivation, discouragement or even hopelessness… constant negative feedback, fear of failure or even general low confidence can all result in us feeling stuck or empty. If we consider ‘inspiration’s’ opposite, we can begin to see how vital it is to FEEL inspired.

So let’s take some time to reflect and engage in what inspires us. Feel free to share words, doodles or pictures - try something new!

REFERENCE: https://www.berkeleywellbeing.com/inspiration.html#:~:text=Inspiration%20can%20lead%20to%20the,the%20development%20of%20innovative%20concepts.

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It’s ok if you are feeling sad, unsure, struggling, overwhelmed, needing boundaries, or even needing time for yourself. So often we’re taught societies expectations and take this into our personal and professional lives, but if we stop and have a moment to think about why is needing time for yourself seen as being selfish? Or why is not knowing what to do next seen as lazy? Or even making a mistake is seen as a huge taboo?

These are ultimately normal experiences - something that we have cope with and learn how to manage. And if approached correctly, these perceived weaknesses can become our strengths. How great would it be to be able to identify when we are beginning to feel overwhelmed, instead of the emotion overtaking us. Being able to manage people’s expectations and adjust deadlines. Or when we know we feel triggered by events, being able to take care of ourselves emotionally, finding appropriate spaces and support systems when we are feeling sad.

Can we begin to accept those parts of our self that we sometimes get frustrated with or wish we could change. Being kind to ourselves doesn’t start with outside influences, but starts with you! So let’s take some time to think about when you need to be kinder to yourself. How do you respond to societal challenges? Or perceived threats? Do you revert to fight, flight or freeze? Or are you able to look at yourself and accept how you’re feeling and say “it’s ok…”

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In order to thrive we need to not only be safe but feel safe! Putting both physical and emotional boundaries in place will look different for every person. Remember your experiences, culture, race, gender identity, religion, etc. will shape how you begin to engage and think about what makes your space feel safe.

You are in charge of building your safe place. What makes a place feel safe? What kinds of people or things feel safe?

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Why is it important to be proud of oneself?

I find ‘pride’ an interesting concept and word to define. So often it is seen as a negative word, where we shy away from people who describe themselves as proud. People who display inflated egos, arrogance, or have a sense of superiority over others are often seen as proud. The 3rd most searched phrase in google relates pride to “sin” – further reinforcing a negative spiritual aspect to the word and its meaning, warning us away from ‘loving ourselves too much’. But when I looked up synonyms for the word pride – pleasure, joy, delight, comfort, content, fulfilment – are all listed!

These words definitely don’t embody or reflect the negative outlook that pride often receives, and all further reinforces why pride should be seen as important.

Being proud of yourself boosts self-esteem, confidence, motivation and mental resilience. Being able to recognise past successes and foster a healthy personal identity, all encouraging you to develop healthier habits and personal growth cannot be a negative. In essence, self-pride is a powerful, healthy emotion that validates your worth and empowers you to live a more fulfilled life by appreciating who you are and what you've achieved.

So as you reflect on what you’re proud of about yourself let’s celebrate these things completing the sentence “I’m proud of me because…”

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The power of music is that it can be easily linked with memories, feelings, cultural experiences and various celebrations – weddings, funerals, birthdays, graduation, etc. When we hear those first few notes of Mariah Carey or the jingle bells of Michael Bublé we all know that it’s that time of year and Christmas is upon us!  Equally we can recall those childhood jingles of our favourite adverts or songs linked to cartoons.

Music can also help to motivate and provide a space for us to feel sometimes difficult emotions. Giving us the space and the time to be sad, frustrated, even angry or slightly crazy! Feel those feelings, accept them and give yourself space and time to just BE!

With this in mind, take the next few days to start creating that playlist. If you can’t think about an emotional need then create a mix tape of your life! The soundtrack to YOU! See this as an opportunity to have a bit of fun with yourself. Remember past experiences, the lessons you have learnt, the celebrations and the commiserations. Take some time to find your anthems and if you’re feeling brave share that music with someone -  friends, family, colleagues – we can learn so much about one another through music!

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Our final activity is here. This is your time to consolidate, reflect and celebrate

For many of us this festive season might not feel like the time of celebrating that we expected or wanted. And that’s ok! It’s important that we’re able to accept that, share with those closest to us, seek support from friends and colleagues if needed, and above all make the time to look after yourself.

So as we look to what we’ve learnt about ourselves over the last 12 activities remember to write down those things proclaiming who you are! Doodle, use colours, try something new and sing and dance it out!