A wedding in Seattle, a trip to meet my boyfriend’s family in New Mexico, another wedding in Palm Springs, a big fundraiser event, my birthday, at least 4 other family and friend birthdays —the past two months have been a lot.
Especially coming right out the gate after a year and a half of doing virtually nothing, knowing it’s also holiday season.
Every one of these events has been special and wonderful, and I’m so grateful for them. They have also made me realize how vital it is to balance out the fun and excitement with rest and slowness.
Now, I don’t need to emphasize how difficult it is to slow down in today’s world, let alone at this time of year.
But I’ve heard rumblings of others experiencing similar feelings of burnout: the unfortunate side effect of finally being able to (safely) travel and socialize and do other things that bring us joy again.
So if you, like me, can’t—or frankly, don’t want to—take these joyful occasions off your calendar, here are a few ways I’m trying to create a sense of slowing down for myself right now:
1. Being fully present with loved ones.
Many of us just went a painfully long time without seeing family and close friends, and it’s warming my heart to see and hear about all these reunions that have been taking place. For me, even though I saw a lot of my family from a safe distance last year, being able to sit down inside a restaurant or home with them for various celebrations has been beautiful and important.
I learned recently that being present in a conversation with someone you care about is a form of mindfulness, so I’m savoring every moment as I reunite and have more normal experiences with people I love.
2. Focusing more on sustainability in my home.
Sustainability is a whole other topic that I could write about, but it actually has a lot of connections to mental health for me. When I’m busy and stressed, it’s easy to get caught up in the frenzy of consumption and act from a place of scarcity.
Lately, I’ve been cleaning out my closet and participating in the circular fashion economy, turning old towels into cleaning rags to replace paper towels, paring down cleaning and beauty products and buying refills instead of more packaging, getting creative with leftovers, shopping local instead of online, borrowing from friends instead of buying new—there’s so much we can do.
I’m not trying to be perfect, but rather I’m focusing on steady improvement and paying attention to my habits. It’s a more intentional and slower way of living, and it makes me spend less money and have slightly less anxiety over the climate crisis.
3. Doing regular check-ins with myself.
Is it just me, or is journaling every day really hard? I recently told an astrologer (yes, I have one of those—hear me out) that I felt like I was struggling to check-in with myself and feel grounded. She suggested that, to make it easy, I create a simple ritual that follows the moon cycle.
So, with every new and full moon, I’ve been writing down a reflection from the past couple weeks and then one thing I want to focus on in the next phase. It’s accessible, easy to commit to, and it’s making me feel more connected to myself.
Whatever your life has felt like lately, I invite you to take a moment to think about what slowing down could look like for you. Because you deserve it.