Do what it takes to reset your inner compass from time to time, and re-energise yourself to navigate the daily peaks and troughs of life.
Feeling overwhelmed by life’s chaos? Maybe it’s time to reset – just like you would with a sluggish gadget. Discover how simple self-care can recharge your mind and body.
Samindara Hardikar-Sawant
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All of us have experienced how our devices need the occasional reboot to work smoothly. Reset a slowed down phone, and it starts functioning efficiently. Restart your laptop, and all the glitches just vanish. But what about us? Every day we deal with an avalanche of information, overflowing emotions, endless tasks, and a jam-packed social calendar. Is it any wonder that, now and then, even our incredible, one-of-a-kind brain just freezes? Perhaps, like our gadgets, we all need a system reboot now and then to start afresh and function at our best.
Resetting our own inner systems – is it as easy as restarting our gadgets? We have countless connections with the world around us; how do we disconnect from those to give ourselves a break? Home and family, career, social obligations, personal engagements – what does ‘resetting and rebooting’ even look like with a living, breathing human being? Many of us are now aware of the importance of self-care, and we try to fit in a holiday in our schedule, or plan a spa-day every once in a while. But is that always possible? And more importantly, is it enough? How do we create a more sustainable self-care routine for ourselves?
Our self-care routines don’t have to be elaborate, fancy, or even time-consuming. But they do need to be relaxing for us personally, they should help us unwind, feel more at ease both in our bodies and our minds, and create a sense of replenishment of our inherent energy. Given below are just a few examples of what effective self-care practices could be.
Breathwork and meditation
Meditation is really the shortest route to inner rejuvenation! Yet, it intimidates many of us. You’ve probably heard different schools of thought on meditation. Some say you need an hour daily, others advocate for two hours, and some insist it’s a discipline that must be rigidly followed. But let’s be honest, most of us, bound tightly by our schedules, struggle to find that kind of time.
But here’s the thing: it doesn’t have to be perfect or long. Whatever time you can spare –five minutes, 10 minutes – is enough. Just close your eyes, let the noise of the world fade, clear your mind, and breathe. Focus on the rhythm of your breath, slow and steady. Even a brief 10 minutes in your day can feel like a lifeline, a moment of pure rejuvenation, a much-needed reboot for your tired system. In short, it’s not about how much time you give, but that you give it at all. So, wherever you are, whatever your day looks like, just stop for a moment, breathe deeply, and let yourself recharge. Try it – you’ll be surprised at the difference it makes!
Reconnect with your hobbies
Life gets so busy, that somewhere along the way, our hobbies fall off the radar. Those little things that we spent hours doing in our childhood, those activities that gave us so much joy and peace – as an adult, we often tell ourselves that these activities are frivolous and add no value to our lives. Nothing could be farther from the truth! When we engage in an activity purely for the joy of it, our entire being is in a state of peaceful flow. These are moments where we are fully immersed in the activity, truly living in the moment, being mindful without taking any conscious effort to be mindful. So whether it is painting, gardening, dancing, gymming, listening to music, playing an instrument, reading, whatever is your way of feeling relaxed, create time for these activities in your weekly schedule. Yes, life is busy, no question about it. But the beauty of this is that if you eke out a little time for engaging in something just for the joy of it, it expands your time for other activities.
Practice digital detox
In today’s world, we are practically tethered to our gadgets. As invaluable as they are for keeping our lives running smoothly, they come with a significant downside: they rarely allow us to truly relax. So, every once in a while, disconnect. Leave behind those electronic extensions of yours – the phone, the tablet, the endless notifications – and simply be. Take a walk in nature, listen to the sound of the wind, read that book you’ve been meaning to, or just sit still and soak in the quiet.
And don’t worry – the world won’t crumble in your absence. Emails can wait. Notifications will still be there when you turn your gadgets on. But the peace, the stillness, and the chance to reset? That’s fleeting. Trust me, you’ll come back feeling lighter, refreshed, and ready to tackle life again. Give it a shot – you deserve it!
Take care of your body
Make sure you hydrate yourself well, eat food that nourishes your body and your soul, and get your requisite hours of sleep. This may sound trite and cliched, but there is a reason why experts tell us to take good care of our body. After all, it is through our body that we execute all our goals, plans, desires and aspirations. If we keep it well-oiled, it feels capable of burdening the load of your goals and plans effortlessly.
Take a break
How often do you take a break to do absolutely nothing? Unthinkable, isn’t it? Society has conditioned us so much about making every minute productive, that we can’t think of intentionally sitting idle. I suggest you try this experiment once. Take a day off – not to tick off errands or attend to others – but for you. Better yet, make it a weekday when the children are at school, the spouse is at work, and you have the rare gift of a day all to yourself. Prioritise yourself for a change. Do nothing productive. Laze around guilt-free. Flip through magazines, watch your favourite shows, listen to music, or just stare at the ceiling if you like! Do all those things you usually dismiss as ‘a waste of time’.
The result? You’ll be surprised at how refreshed and re-energised you feel. That one ‘wasted’ day can do wonders for your mind and spirit. Trust me, it’s worth it!
Spend time with loved ones
How many of us have experienced that even though we live with our family, we get precious little time to truly connect. Everyday life is full of transactional conversations and dialogues around logistics, and suddenly we realise that we haven’t truly spent time with each other. The same goes for our friends. How about marking some time in our busy calendars for each other – time where we are simply enjoying each other’s company? It could simply be a spa date with your partner, or a dose of retail therapy with your friends, or a nice family dinner. The amount of good it will do your soul is priceless.
These are just some suggestions, some activities that have helped people feel more connected to themselves, and more nurtured by themselves. But you don’t have to limit yourself to these activities. Self-care is deeply personal, and can range from things that give us a fleeting sense of well-being (like bingeing on sugar, shopping, or skin care), to more enduring activities like prayer, meditation, journalling and so forth. As long as your self-care routine has a healthy mix of both, let no one tell you what is okay and what is not. Do what it takes to reset your inner compass from time to time, and re-energise yourself to navigate the daily peaks and troughs of life.
Ms. Samindara Hardikar-Sawant
Psychologist & Psychotherapist | Trauma Focused Therapist | Transformational Family Therapist | Regression Therapist | RE-CBT Practitioner
Director, Disha Counseling Center
www.dishaforu.com | samindara.blogspot.com