Friday

As I described in another post recently, I have been re-reading John Kim's Transparency.

 

He describes a guide to a better life/state of thought in three steps:

1. Transparency: basically being MYSELF in the all ways, always.
2. Stance: Holding true to my beliefs/goals/uniqueness.

And...

3. Container: my safe space where growth happens.

I am now ready to talk about Container.

Container is...
Creating a safe place for change and growth.  It is where I can be transparent and hold my stance.
There are six basic self-care needs in my life: emotional, spiritual, sexual, financial, physical and intellectual.
Meeting these needs (and in the planning and process of trying to meet them) creates life structure.


I must create a SELF CARE PLAN that will incorporate all of my needs for healthy growth:

Emotional Needs
1. Finding *help* -- an outlet like self help literature or therapy.
2. Bonding with others, sharing my story. Being a friend and having friends.
3. Saying NO.
4. Letting go of negative feelings, beings and situations.
5. Being less intense (tough on myself) when it comes to my daughter.

Physical Needs
1. EXERCISE!
2. Better sleep.
3. More walking, less sitting at work.
4. Diet control.
5. Health Insurance!

Spiritual
1. No church right now (yikes!) but definitely an exploration into a spiritual practice of sorts.
2. Thankfulness.
3. Forgiveness of myself and others.
4. Awe of nature.
5. Intentions.

Sexual
1. Ugh. I can't ignore this but I certainly don't want to discuss it in a public forum.  I will say that I feel as though the needs for this are all-set because quite frankly, I am not needy.

Intellectual
1. Reading more.
2. Hobbies.
3. Training Manuals.
4. The specifics of whole foods cooking, (I want to know what I am doing in my kitchen).
5. Blogs (instead of Pinterest!).

Financial
1. Job change/upgrade/realignment.
2. Student Loan Management!
3. Grocery list Management.
4. Savings.
5. Less dependence on others, more streamlining.


AND FINALLY what I will DO NOW to help begin my self care plan:

1. Emotional: Look for therapy options that I can actually afford.
2. Physical: Start walking.
3. Spiritual: Upon waking, practice thankfulness and daily intention.
4. Sexual: I'm good.
5. Financial: Start putting money back into my savings with each paycheck.