John Bowlby’s Attachment Theory Attachment Theory is a well-known and widely accepted concept in human development and psychotherapy. British psychiatrist John Bowlby developed it in the 1950s. The crux of attachment theory is that the early emotional bonds between...
John Bowlby’s Attachment Theory
The Helpful Ideas of Donald Winnicott
The Helpful Ideas of Donald Winnicott Continuing my series on the founders of psychoanalysis I'm exploring Donald Winnicott this month. Donald Winnicott (1896-1971) was a paediatrician who then trained as a psychoanalyst, first to adults and later to...
The Importance of Melanie Klein
The Importance of Melanie Klein Melanie Klein was a groundbreaking and highly creative psychoanalyst. She was born in 1882 in Vienna but spent most of her life in UK, dying in London in 1960. Her life was fascinating, with many losses and tragedies but...
Carl Jung – Is He Relevant Today?
Carl Jung – Is He Relevant Today? Carl Gustav Jung was born into a religious family in Switzerland and studied to be a doctor. During these studies he became fascinated with current philosophy, anthropology and psychological theories and work in...
How Freud Is Still Relevant Today
How Freud Is Still Relevant Today Prompted by last month’s blog on Narcissism, this is the first in a series on some of the founding members in psychoanalysis and some of their ideas, many of which, I believe, are still useful for us today. Widely...
Narcissism
Narcissism The term 'narcissism' is banded around a lot. But what does being a narcissist actually mean? And how do we work out if we are in a relationship with one, or even if we might be one ourselves? Origins of Narcissism The term narcissism comes from...
The Art of Self-soothing 4: Using Our Senses
Using Our Senses This final post in my series is about using our bodily senses to self-soothe. There are lots of ways that we can self-sooth by looking. Sight Natural Vistas As I’ve already mentioned in a previous post, nature and landscapes are very calming. For...
The Art of Self-soothing 3: Creativity
Creativity is a sure way to self-soothe. People have lost themselves in creative pursuits since time began. Getting in touch with our creativity is a way of reaching something within ourselves. By allowing this to develop we can usually make something bigger than...
The Art of Self-Soothing 2: Nature
This month’s way to self soothe is by being in nature. It’s long been known and proven that being outside and preferably in nature can improve our mental health. Take a Short Walk The simplest ways are often the most effective. Such as going for a short walk from your...
The Art of Self Soothing
There is so much going on in the world now. It’s hard watching the news, in fact I am more likely to just quickly check a news ap than I am to watch the news in real time. Many people I speak to are unable to watch the news at all because they struggle to think of the...
This is the time of year to have a good old spring clean or a declutter. Traditionally the home was aired and cleaned after a long winter of smoke and dust from open fires. These days, with central heating, our homes are in less need of an overhaul.
Although this traditional spring clean is less popular, now is a good opportunity to take stock of some aspects of our lives and spend time having a declutter, reorganising, editing and reducing the unnecessary and unwanted.
Our environments
We feel more positive and relaxed in a tidy and clean environment, whether it’s our home or our working environment. If we are organised and methodical then we feel more calm. Untidiness and messiness in our immediate environment affects our stress levels, I know I write better when my desk is tidy. Whilst we can function in an unruly environment, living in a disorganised atmosphere can lead to a nagging feeling of low level stress. Having a declutter can be more than just an physical task, it can be emotional too.
If we allow this underlying stress to continue then it can impact on our ability to focus and our ability to relax. If we know that we really need to pick up that load of washing, attack that pile of ironing, tidy our workspace or open and file that post then it can quietly bug us until we get on and do it. Making ourselves do the dull chore that we have been putting off will give us relief.
It’s wise to have a place for things to live so that we can return them after using them. If we cannot find where we’ve put things then we can become stressed whilst looking for them, especially if we’re in a hurry.
When we are ill then we take less care of ourselves because just getting through the day is challenge enough. Once we feel better we have the energy to wash and take more care in our hygiene and appearance.
Emotions
As well as physical illness this can also apply to how we feel about ourselves emotionally. The more negative we feel about ourself then the less effort we may take in looking after ourself, in a variety of ways. This can include:
- personal hygiene
- clothing
- relaxation
- sleep
- holidays
- exercise
- eating healthily
- learning new things
Do we feel that we have been neglecting an area of our life? Could we benefit from an emotional spring clean in part of our life?
Here are some suggestions for how we can spring clean ourselves:
- have a new hairstyle or hair colour
- take up a new hobby or sport
- go through our wardrobe and take clothes we haven’t worn for two years to a charity shop
- polish shoes
- organise our online files
- prune shrubs
- declutter drawers, cupboards and filing cabinets
- wash and air winter duvets before storing
- declutter and sort through the garage or garden shed
- take time to see how we are progressing towards our goals and resolutions for the year
- book a holiday
Any of the above ideas should help us feel more positive, focussed and relaxed.
Read my previous blog: Life goes on