Our theme for this year’s Mother’s Day Tea event was the connection between mind, body, and soul. Mother’s Day is a good time for all women to stop and think about the people we care for, but it often leaves little time for ourselves. If we wish to remain healthy and find balance and well-being in our lives, we must take care of our mind, body, and soul, whose relationship makes us whole.
Mind | Your mind is your means of thinking (both consciously and unconsciously), which is responsible for your beliefs and actions. Our minds are responsible for making decisions, maintaining emotional stability, helping with memory and concentration, and helping us focus. A healthy mind gives clarity, and ways to strengthen your mind include:
- Meditating helps reduce stress and increase awareness of negative thoughts. It can help you feel calmer and react more mindfully to stressful situations. Prayer is another means of accomplishing these goals.
- Learning something new: Just like a muscle, your brain needs exercise to stay fit. Learning helps create and strengthen new neural connections that keep your brain active and healthy.
- Getting enough sleep: Sleep is essential for the mind, body, and soul. The quality and quantity of sleep can affect your mood and metabolism. The average person needs between 7 and 9 hours of sleep each night, but the right amount depends on the person.
- Finding your passion: Making time for the things you enjoy can help regulate your mood and contribute to greater energy, vitality, and overall well-being.
- Taking time off: Resting and allowing yourself to have fun can help you stay healthy. Find ways to build rest into your schedule. Spend time with loved ones.
- Having a growth mindset will help you become more resilient to unexpected bumps in the road and overcome challenges by seeing them as opportunities.
Body | Your body is the physical aspect of yourself that carries you through life and allows you to experience the world through your five senses. A healthy body gives us strength, vitality, and energy to face life’s challenges. Our physical health influences mood and mental/emotional well-being. Ways to strengthen your body include:
- Exercise is essential for a healthy body. It elevates mood, relieves stress, and maintains brain health. Do activities that bring you joy. Find ways to be more active in your daily life.
- Eating a balanced diet: What you eat influences your thoughts, feelings, and beliefs. Eat healthier foods, including vegetables and fruits, limit your consumption of meat, alcohol, caffeine, and sugar, and drink at least two liters of water per day.
- Yoga can help relieve emotional tension stored in the muscles and fibers of the body and calm the mind by focusing on the present moment. Breathing techniques have many benefits, including reducing stress, increasing energy, and elevating mood and concentration.
Soul | Your soul or spirit is that intangible part of you that one might refer to as your essence. Our faith helps us connect with our souls. A healthy soul helps us experience positive emotions, such as peace, joy, gratitude, emotional resilience, kindness, and compassion towards others. It gives us a sense of purpose by being connected to something greater than ourselves: God. Ways to strengthen your soul include:
- Prayer is a spiritual practice that provides comfort and peace to both those who pray and those who say prayers. It connects us with God and provides us with peace, comfort, and strength.
- Connecting with something greater than yourself: Research shows that helping others is good for you, so look for ways to give back. This may be through your religious community, activism, or volunteering.
- Practicing gratitude: Gratitude trains the brain to let go of negative thoughts and look for things to be grateful for instead. This improves mood and overall mind-body-soul well-being.
- Being compassionate to yourself and others: Self-compassion is more useful than self-confidence when it comes to accepting and living with your mistakes and failures. Cultivating self-compassion also helps develop greater compassion for others, leading to a loving and more peaceful life.
So, women, take the opportunity this Mother’s Day to focus on taking care of your mind, body, and soul. A healthy mind, body, and soul will impact the way you feel about yourself and transform you into the happiest, healthiest, and most vibrant version of yourself.
