Self-Care | Uniquely Yours Craft Journal

Self Discovery Prompts

15 May 2019 Comments Off on Self Discovery Prompts

by uniquelyyourscraftjournal in Self-Care Tags: Prompts

Dear Fellow Journalers,

There’s a line from one of my favorite stories that goes like this:

“Be gentle with his feelings”

Sometimes, in the throes of grief, despair, anger, loneliness we attack ourselves and others. A journal of self discovery can help us sort through the many layers of one’s life and create a safe place to vent. By being gentle with ourselves we can become a better person.

Some prompts for self-love are:

What good habit do you want to begin this month?
What do you need to start saying “yes” to?
What do you need to forgive yourself for?
What is your biggest struggle of loving yourself? And finally,
Find a verse, poem or quote that inspires you in your current situation and write it down. Repeat it every day this month.

~Sallie

Reflections of myself

08 May 2019 Comments Off on Reflections of myself

by uniquelyyourscraftjournal in Paper Daydreams, Self-Care Tags: Personality Circle, Thomas Crown Affair

Dear Fellow Journalers,

Do you remember the soundtrack from the movie “The Thomas Crown Affair”? The title is, appropriately enough, “The Windmills of your mind.” The last rather lengthy line is as follows:

“Like a circle in a spiral

Like a wheel within a wheel

Never ending or beginning

On a ever- spinning reel

As the images unwind

Like the circles that you find

In the windmills of your mind.”

Back in 1950 two men Joseph Luft and Harrington Ingham invented the Johari Window as a model for mapping personality awareness. The idea was to take a fixed list of positive adjectives describing oneself and put them in a grid. To get started the person would make copies of the grid and then pick 5 or 6 of the adjectives that they thought best described themselves. They would then send their friends and co-workers the same list and ask them to describe him. In a similar way, a negative grid of adjectives could be drawn and the whole window of oneself would be revealed.

Much later in the 1990’s, I was working in corporate America and the idea of this interactive personality “quiz” was presented in a workshop. Back then it wasn’t in the form of a grid but a circle much like the one below:

We were each given a piece of white paper with two circles drawn on it. The outer ring was for co-workers and the inner ring was for us. Our instructions were to make copies o the circle and give them to friends and co-workers and in private fill in the open circle with our strengths and traits. After about a week we were to collect the circles and we would be revealed. Of course, the exercise was voluntary and confidential and most of us agreed that it was certainly eye-opening!

Some of the comments I received then we’re thoughtful, leader, cheerful, reliable, dedicated, well-organized. I wonder what people would write now?

~Sallie

Unread books

26 Sep 2018 Comments Off on Unread books

by uniquelyyourscraftjournal in Self-Care Tags: Umberto Eco, unread books

Dear Fellow Journalers,

How many unread books are on your bookshelf? Do you have a wish list on Good Reads or on an e-reader? Stop worrying! You have an Antilibrary.

Umberto Eco writes that “read books are far less valuable than unread ones.” The theory is based on the idea that knowing what we don’t know is more important than knowing what we do.

If you have growing library of books that you haven’t read yet don’t despair. Don’t feel as though there’s a giant time clock somewhere that ticks away your reading minutes. Having unread books means that you’re interested in new information. It means you have a healthy curiosity. It means you’re a person who cares about your life.

My list of self-care unread books include the following:

“If I understood you, would I have this look on my face?” by Alan Alda

“The Glass Castle” by Jeannette Walls

“Be in a Treehouse” by Pete Nelson

“Rising Strong” by Brene Brown

“The Culper Ring” Charles Rivers Editors

“The Bookshop of Yesterdays” by Amy Meyerson

“We need to talk: How to have conversations that matter” by Celeste Headlee

“The Joy of Stress” by Loretta LaRoche

“Igniting the American Revolution 1773-1775” by Derek W. Beck

So what’s on your unread shelf?

~Sallie

Self-Care Strategies

19 Sep 2018 Comments Off on Self-Care Strategies

by uniquelyyourscraftjournal in Self-Care Tags: positive mindfulness, strategies, Super Soul Sunday

Dear Fellow Journalers,

Self-Care journaling is the ultimate self-care activity. It’s something you do for yourself. We’ve been on this journey of self-discovery for a while now (see post on mindfulness) so for those of you who have been journaling and reading this blog, some of what I am about to say will sound familiar.

When we write we tell our stories. We translate experiences to words, feelings to language, senses to thoughts. We have to be honest for this to work. Remember, we can still destroy our journals – wait! Did I just write that?? Our first great step is to breathe. Set a timer for 5 minutes. Create a sanctuary and focus.

Be your own best friend. Sometimes we get really down on ourselves. We reach the end of our rope and hang on waiting for someone to notice, pick us up. We cry for help and then realize that help is coming from us. When we’re writing “stream of consciousness” we need to remember to let our thoughts and feelings drift. Don’t second guess yourself. Don’t correct your grammar. Don’t forget to have fun! If your journaling becomes annoying or confusing be good to yourself. Put your pen down and do something to bring joy to your life.

Thinking of you,

~Sallie

Finding Hope and Joy

12 Sep 2018 Comments Off on Finding Hope and Joy

by uniquelyyourscraftjournal in Self-Care Tags: hope, Karen Kingsbury joy

Dear Fellow Journalers,

There was a survey conducted recently that showed 57% of the respondents reporting “significant stress” about negative news reporting. There’s always been negativity in the world but it seems magnified to me lately. To someone undergoing “extreme stress” (loss of job, family issues, health problems) finding hope is, forgive me, “a joke.”

In order to move forward in your life, you need a hopeful attitude and Dr. Rosalind Tompkins founder of the National Month of Hope ( April) ) says that ” finding hope in everyday challenges is the first step in creating a solution. Here are some of her tips:

Take a hope break. Schedule 5 minute “hope breaks” in your normal day. Find a quiet place and breathe in and out and think about good things happening instead of the worst scenarios.
Set goals. Surround yourself with happy people who believe in you.
Volunteer in your community or Church. Try reading to children or helping in a town-sponsored food pantry.
Have a chat with someone who is in need of hope.
Rather than “woe is me” share some hope signs from your life.

Karen Kingsbury (best-selling Christian author) wrote on her blog recently some ideas to help us.

Read a book (not necessarily one of her’s!)
Call a friend.
Play a game with your family.
Take a walk in the sunshine.
Hug more.
Journal (where have I heard that before??)
Do one thing each day to make someone else’s life better.

Her final comments on the post were:

” Life isn’t perfect. But if we don’t determine to choose joy, we can actually lose entire seasons worrying, fretting, riddled with anxiety. Days and weeks pass with nothing but bickering to mark our moments.

CHOOSE JOY.”

Have a joy-filled day,

~Sallie