Welcome to the nourishing. Amy podcast. I'm Amy Rankin. I am an emotional intelligence and life coach as Speaker, a Creator, and a wellness. Chaser, I have created this podcast for you to learn how 'but mindset changes and get really actionable. Takeaways to find out who you are, what lights you up, how you can love yourself again and how to live your best life. Give yourself the space to welcome in more self-care and
confidence. Reduce feelings like overwhelm and stress and let find your sparkle again. Are you ready? Let's do it. Hello and welcome back to the nourishing. Amy podcast, welcome to episode 90, which I don't know. That feels kind of big, it's kind of exciting, right? 90 episodes, that's a lot of episodes. Today is a therapy Thursday episode. So if you've been around for the last few weeks, you would know that this is a new segment that I've decided to bring in.
And I discuss any takeaways or things that I've learnt or action steps that I have decided to implement from Personal coaching sessions that I have had myself or from any workshops or seminars, that I attend. So, this week, I want to talk to you about sensory self-care. And before I attended this Workshop, I actually had never even heard of sensory self-care, but I found it. Really cool and really interesting. So I'm going to share that with
you. But before I jump into that, I want to give you this week's recommendation or today's recommendation. So you would have noticed that I've been giving NG podcast either podcast series that I listened to or specific podcast episodes that I listen to as recommendations for the last few episodes. Because that's a question that I get asked pretty regularly. If I pop a question box up on my Instagram is what other podcasts
do you listen to? And I totally get it, I'm addicted to podcasts, I love them. I'm always listening to them, depending on my mood, is depending on what one, I decide to listen to, and on Tuesday's episode, if you've had a listen so that episode was Ten tips to help you thrive in mum life and you know what? Even, if you're not a mum, I feel like go and have a listen to that episode because those tips can really be applied to any body that feels busy, or overwhelmed or stressed.
So even if you're not a mom, go and have a listen. Yeah, there's a few like mum chat things here and there, but all of those 10 tips are going to be relevant for helping you to feel more calm, more relaxed, less overwhelmed, and less stress. Rest. Now, in that episode, I did mention that I was going to tell you about a specific Kylie camps podcast episode, and that episode is, it's from the 5th of August and it's called food and mood with Eliza. I absolutely loved this podcast
episode. I shared it on my Instagram and a few of you have already, let me know that you went over and listened and really enjoyed it as well. It was really interesting, if you are an Subscribe, I will listen our, you would know a bit of my back story is that, when I went through big big Life Changes years ago, I was very stressed. And when I get stressed, I can't
eat a lot. And so what I was really focusing on back then and I mean it's a habit that's continued on to this day is really focusing on well if I'm not going to be able to eat a lot and I don't feel well, how can I best be nourishing my body with Every single meal that I'm having every ingredient that's going into this meal that I'm making whether it's a smoothie or a salad or dinner or a sandwich for lunch, how can I really make this nourishing for my body and
give my body the energy and fuel that it needs? And I feel like this episode food and mood with Eliza over on Kylie camps, podcast was really related to that as well. Eliza talks a lot about the different nutrients that we need to be feeling more like The best version of ourselves more energy, less brain fog, less stress, less overwhelmed, sleeping better, all that kind of stuff.
So look, I loved the episode. So I mean, Kylie camps podcast is great in itself, but that specific episode, I really loved. So go and have a listen, that's my recommendation for this week. Now, let's talk about sensory
self-care. Like I said, it's not something that I'd ever really heard of before and so when I was learning about it, I was like, oh, this is kind of cool but also, wow, this is something I really He needed to hear at the moment, what I mean by sensory self-care is really getting back
in touch with your senses. Obviously, I guess it's kind of in the name, but we've got our five senses and a lot of the time when we're so busy and we're taking off all the boxes and doing all of the things and, you know, focusing on multiple things at once, we can kind of forget to focus on just one thing at a time or just what one thing feels like or what? Thing tastes like or specific sounds that we can hear and really appreciating all of those things.
So this is exactly what sensory self-care is. Now the activity that we had to do in this workshop for this. So this was a workshop that I did as a group workshop with bu coaching which is where I work. So you probably have heard me talk about this before. But very quickly, we do one-on-one coaching sessions when you are a client with us. But you also have the option to To attend, we have weekly online group workshops as well, and we go through all different topics.
So like everything from Health to social life, to Career, to finances, to self care to, self-improvement self development. Growth goal, setting, all of that kind of stuff. Literally, like, pretty much anything you can think of, if you have a question about it and, like, thinking patterns and all of that kind of stuff, then there's a workshop that we have for you, or we, You pray plan them for three months in advance so we got some really cool ones coming up as well so that's all included.
If you are a client with us at bu and so I was on for one of these group workshops and we were talking about the idea that it was actually a deep work workshop and the kind of overarching theme for this Workshop is that we get quite distracted with the little things that we don't really focus on. All the big things, the things that are really going to move the needle because we can procrastinate and this really resonated with me and I was like, oh yeah, I definitely do this.
So more specifically, what I mean by that is say, for example, you've written out your to-do list for the day and you've got fifteen things on your to-do list out of those 15 things. There's probably three or four or five that are really important, they really matter and they might be kind of hard to like, they're Just the easy thing. So when I say easy things, I mean, let's say like, for my to do list, I write everything down because I'm like, I got to get everything out of my head.
And I just want to close out some of these tabs.
So I feel less overwhelmed. So, I will put things on there, like, having my cup of tea in the morning because that to me is an achievement actually making that cup of tea, and having it hot guys, that doesn't happen, that often things like tidying, the kitchen making dinner, doing the washing-up, you No, those miscellaneous things that it's like, yeah, they're going to make a difference like, yes, that is going to help me to feel less overwhelmed and more tidy and
just fresh. But also at the same time, what I can tend to do is, I'm like, okay cool. I've got these 10 things and they're pretty small there, pretty easily achievable. So I'm going to do all of them now and so I'll run around the house and do all of these things and sit down and have my breakfast and you know, check my emails message clients all That kind of stuff. And then all of a sudden, it's lunch time and I'm like shit. Okay, go back and have a look at my to do list.
I'm like, cool. I've got like, eight out of those ten things done. So my kitchens tidy, I've had my breakfast, my cup of tea. I've had my lunch, you know, like all of the things but it's like I've still got those three or four, big things that I really need to get done today and now I feel stressed. Now, I'm like a whole God it's halfway through the day. Like I feel like I don't have enough time to do all of these. These things.
Now this is what I mean by doing the Deep work, it's not focusing on the small things and getting all of them down first and then stressing about the big things, it's actually feeling more productive and procrastinating less and wanting to really focus on those. Those important things that yeah, they might be hard or yes, they might take a little bit longer than what the other things would. But how much more proud of yourself?
Do you feel? And you feel like you're actually at Shaving things in moving towards where you want to be, because yes, having a tidy house is all well and good. But that's not actually really moving me towards the future version of me and my goals that I have.
Right. I hope some of this is resonating with you like I say in the Thursday therapy it's pretty closely like it's all related to like my takeaways and the things that I got from the workshops but my hope is that you guys will get takeaways as well. The lessons on these episodes have actually been really high, so I'm Kind of going to assume that you're liking them, if you are liking them, actually maybe send me a message and let me
know because I got no idea. I'm just, I'm just out here, trying out some new things. So let's actually really dive into this sensory self-care aspect that comes in here. So the point of talking about the Deep work and the shallow work, or the small things, and the big things is that a lot of the time because our to do list can have so many things on them. Kind of a just like one thing to the next thing to the next thing. And the focus is a bit everywhere and all over the place.
And so that means that we're not really as connected with ourselves, as what we could be, we're not as present within our world but also within our bodies, as what we could be. And I know when Declan was talking about this, I was really resonating and I thought yeah, I really actually need this reminder at the moment because it's true. I do feel like I'm just a bit all over the place at the moment so What we actually did, he gave us an exercise to do and we had
to focus on something sensory. And this is what I mean, by sensory self-care for 7 minutes so he set the timer for 7 minutes and this is the practice that I want you guys to do at least 5 minutes, at least 5 minutes, you can't tell me, you don't have five minutes in your day that you could do this for. So what we did was set a timer for seven minutes and so the thing that I focused on I lit a candle, And all and I focused on the flame flickering. Now I also have a diffuser.
Something else that I find really calming. If I put my diffuser, only is actually just watching the Mist. Come out of the top. So you could definitely do that. If you have a diffuser, you could be going for a walk outside and feeling the grass under your toes or going for a walk along the beach and feeling the sand under your feet. You could actually do this exercise with food. So this is a practice that we have actually done at bu a two years ago now as well but it was so cool.
What I actually really encourage you to do with this is go and grab a fresh raspberry. So go and buy a punnet of raspberries. I think they're coming into season now too and really focus on Actually eating this raspberry with intention. Now you could do this with anything. I know other people have done it with things like chocolate and stuff like that before but let's
be honest. When was the last time that you actually really were present with something that you were eating whether it's one ingredient or a whole meal. We're so often doing so many other things may be scrolling social media or talking on our phones or replying to emails or we're in a work meeting, like all of these things that we're doing while we're eating when Actually paying attention to our food, what it tastes like what it smells like, what it feels
like. So this activity with the raspberry was really, really cool. It gave me such a new appreciation for food and helped me to become so much more present when I'm eating. So what we actually did before we even put the raspberry in our mouth, was we just sat and looked at the raspberry and started to think about eating it. What that actually does is activates your saliva glands,
which was really cool. All just to notice like wow, it's so interesting, the changes that my body goes through automatically that I'm not even like I have no control over this, it's just happening because it knows I'm going to eat something. So then what we did was we felt the raspberry in our fingers and were really present with that. And then we put the raspberry in our mouth. Before we chew, we actually just let it sit in our mouth, just feel it. Maybe on the roof of your mouth
on your tongue. Beyond the sides of your mouth, it was really cool because I don't know if you've ever really paid very much attention to a raspberry before but they're like squishy. And I don't know, it was just so interesting. Then we proceeded to eat the raspberry so we started chewing, we were really focusing on. What can I feel in my mouth at the moment? What does it taste like? And I smell anything.
All of that kind of stuff. It was such an amazing and like I said, interesting exercise to do so you can definitely Do this with food as well and I really encourage that raspberry exercise just be really slow and intentional with it and just see kind of what comes up for you and what you start to notice. But like I said, setting your timer for 5 minutes, minimum five minutes. I'd love you to do seven and just be present with that thing. Now guaranteed, your mind is
going to wander. I know mine, did I started thinking about all the work staff and the food shopping and the meals I was going to call can You know, all the life things that's going to happen, and it's okay. But the point is, when you notice your mind starting to wander, bring yourself back, just bring yourself back into the moment. Refocus back on that thing, and just see what comes up for you. Now, you can have a pen and
paper with you. If you want to make some notes after the seven minutes is up. And there's a few things that have come to mind that you don't want to forget or some thoughts that have come up that you want a journal on, you can definitely do that, but it's just so, Such a good exercise for your mind because what we're actually doing is really starting to bring the focus back into the present moment.
And by doing this more regularly, it means that your brain can be more present more often and eventually what you'll find is you don't actually need to set yourself a timer. You actually just start to train your brain to be more present and that is the cool part. That's the massive takeaway here. Now, something else that we My other takeaway from this is that we just spoke about the idea of
letting ourselves just be bored. And really thought about, when was the last time that I let myself just be really bored. I had nothing on like, I set aside time in my calendar, that I just did. Absolutely nothing. I didn't have my phone with me, I wasn't making notes for anything replying to emails having a conversation with anybody texting anyone. All of the Things that we busy ourselves with and distract ourselves with what is that
actually doing to our brains. Like, I know that our attention span is so much less and we want that instant gratification of information, we have Google, we have information. So, ready at our fingertips, these days that if something's not happening really quickly, then it's just not happening at all, or we can start to feel frustrated, and this is what we On to really start to focus on moving past is like it's
actually. Okay and it's actually a really good thing for me to just give my brain some space. Just give my brain a chance to just switch off for a second and just be bored. Like, what's wrong with that? There is nothing wrong with being bored but as a society, we've really started to condition ourselves. That being busy is important. And multitasking is important. And yes, being busy and multitasking.
Getting a lot of things done, does serve a purpose and it does help us to move towards where we want to be. But there is such a beauty that can come with being bored. And for a lot of us on that Workshop. What we started to notice was that?
Yeah, I can think back to moments where I have just let myself be bored and I've actually come up with a really good idea or I've solved a problem that I couldn't get past in my relationship or with my kids or I've come up with this really good idea for this thing that I've been. Stock on or I've come up with an idea for a work meeting. Or I realized that, you know, maybe I over exaggerated or sorry. Not over-exaggerated, what's the
word? I'm trying to think of overreacted in this situation and I would like to maybe do this differently and you just give yourself a chance to just think about things that are normally pushed to the side of your mind. This is the really beautiful
part that aspect of just giving your brain some space too. just slow down and just focus on, you know, hopefully just one thing at a time, you're not distracting yourself with Netflix or your phone or conversations or other things and other people and giving yourself the space to just be So this is the idea of sensory self-care. We've got either focusing on something with one of your sensors for 7 minutes or just letting yourself be bored.
And I'm really interested to see what one of these things really resonates and sits well with you. And if you give yourself a chance to do them let's come and have a chat about it in the Facebook group. Let's come and talk about some things that help you to feel really good that help you to switch off your brain and reduce that overwhelm because Really, what we're aiming for. We want to feel overwhelmed less, we want to feel stressed less. We want to feel more calm, we
want to feel more relaxed. We want to give your brain that space to just be And that's it. I hope you've enjoyed this therapy Thursday episode. I'll talk to you soon. If you liked this episode, I would love for you to screenshot and tag me on Instagram. You guys have no idea how much that absolutely makes my day. I get such a big smile on my face. Thank you so much for hanging out with me today and I hope that you have got them something
from this episode. If you want to hang out more you can search the nourishing, Amy podcast community in Facebook and come. And join our group where Talking all things. Life. Love overwhelm and everything in between, you can share your funny, memes your stories and all of the life stuff. If you would like to get in contact with me, please don't hesitate to reach out and shoot me a message on Instagram. You can find me at a me underscore Rankin.
Last but not least, it really helps to support my podcast. When you subscribe and leave a review on whatever app it is, that you listen to this podcast on, I am just a little independent podcaster and every subscriber Review helps my podcast to be seen and heard by more people and to help more people get their Sparkle back. Thank you again, so much for being with me and have a fantastic day.