Mindfulness for Reduced Stress

By Roz Jones

As the holidays come to a close, we may still find ourselves stressed from the different routines, the uptick in social gatherings, the mess of presents and food, or the extra responsibilities of caring for a loved one. This is a great time to take a few moments to practice mindfulness to bring that stress under control.

Being aware of your thoughts, feelings, and reactions to situations is called mindfulness. The mindful approach to dealing with stress lets you acknowledge and embrace it and then let it go instead of running or hiding from it. A mindful person feels relaxed, at peace and is observant.

Follow these tips to help you begin being more mindful and developing your mindset to embrace stress.

Be grateful every day. Schedule a regular time daily to write down 5 things you are grateful for. Don’t just list the same five things each day. Find little things such as the butterfly that landed on your shoulder or the smile from a stranger.

Be mindful of your surroundings. When stressed, bring yourself back into the present moment with a deep breath and reset your emotions. Choose to be calm.

Reset your mindset. Ask yourself what you can learn from this challenge. Stress imprints on your mind to get you ready to handle similar stress in the future.

Write down what’s causing the stress and find an appropriate solution. Getting what’s worrying you down on paper can help you see a different perspective.

Do some self-reflection meditation. If you think meditation is just for yoga class or new-age aficionados, you may be surprised that it can be a healthy habit for everyone. Find a quiet space and start deep breathing. Clear your mind so you can self-reflect on calm and happy memories and things you’re thankful for.

Observe your own thoughts. You often react to stress automatically. This can lead to anxiety. Assess your thoughts and identify what is really happening.

Be mindful by focusing on what you’re doing, whether it’s eating, driving, or participating in a conversation. Part of our daily stress comes from having too many things on our minds at one time. Learning to be more mindful of your thoughts by focusing on what you are doing helps you embrace any stress of the moment in that moment.

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I’ve just launched Shop With Roz, my online store filled with supplies and gifts for every caregiver. You can find a wide variety of products in the store to help yourself and your loved one. Check it out here!

After you have a look through the store, see any products you use and love as a caregiver, and think we should share them with everyone? Let me know!

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It’s here, I am so excited to share a new caregiver app called CircleOf….This app will allow you to surround yourself with resources and experts from your community including ME!!!! As you are looking through the app, you will see my familiar face. I’m excited about this partnership and new ways to support you as you support your loved one. Here’s the link so you can explore the app. I would love your feedback and spread the word by sharing the link to family and friends.

Interested in making your own contribution to the Caregiver Cafe? There are guest blog spots open for December. Email assistrozjones@gmail.com for more info!

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!

2 Weeks of Decluttering: Create Habits to Get Things Done

By Roz Jones

How many times have you woken up with incredible willpower and motivation to get things done but quickly hit a wall that stops you in your tracks? This is something that happens to everyone, but there is an easy fix. Create habits to get more done so that you never have to rely on willpower.

You already have good habits built into your day. For example, you get up, bathe, brush your teeth, get dressed, etc. You also have set routines scheduled for getting ready for work. All of the little tasks that you do, with little thought, are your habits. You may not realize it. However, these small habits kick in automatically to help you get 60 to 70% of things done during the day.

Start with The Clock

The first thing you need to do to create a habit is to use your clock as your guide. If you know that an activity takes you 2 hours, you’ll need to schedule the thing you want to remember to do with enough time to do it. At first, you’re just going to go do the thing when the alarm tells you to.

Link Habits Together

If you already have a habit that you can alter a bit to make it healthier for you, that is also a good way to make a habit. For example, if you always like to eat snacks while watching TV, you have a habit. Likely, the moment you sit down to watch TV your brain says you’re hungry, so you must get the snack. You can now simply choose a healthy snack such as a couple sliced apples instead of a bag of gummies.

Create One Habit At A Time

Don’t try to create a bunch of new habits at once. Take your time. Try to create one new good habit that keeps your life uncluttered no more than monthly. You may want to give it a couple months for each new habit to be ingrained.

When you create habits, it’s so much better than needing to rely on willpower. When you build a habit, it will carry you through lots of things even when you don’t feel like it. You won’t even realize you’re still doing all those things that you turned into habits.

Take a look here at my last post about other helpful ways to declutter by leveraging your downtime.

After you have a look through the store, see any products you use and love as a caregiver, and think we should share them with everyone? Let me know!

Interested in making your own contribution to the Caregiver Cafe? There are guest blog spots open for December. Email assistrozjones@gmail.com for more info!

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!

Two Weeks of Decluttering: Leverage Down Time

By Roz Jones

Over the next two weeks, let’s take a look at the many ways to bring a little simplicity to our lives amidst the chaos of the holidays!

There are times in your life that become downtime through no planning or thought of your own. For example, driving from place to place, waiting in line, waiting for the microwave, sitting at the doctor’s office, and so forth. You’re just standing there or sitting there doing nothing. However, you can make these times productive, if you plan ahead.

Driving

If you’re simply riding in a vehicle, rather than driving, you can probably get a lot of work done. For instance, use the time to delete emails that you no longer need. If you are driving, you can use the time to learn something new with audiobooks and podcasts.

Waiting in Line

When you’re in a long line for something, you can take that time to go over your to-do list to better organize it and determine exactly what you’re going to do when you’re done with this line. You can also answer email, pay bills, and other things if you use your smartphone for these things.

Waiting on Food

Even if you’re home, waiting on your microwave to heat up the leftovers, you can things done during those 2 minutes. Wipe off counter tops or declutter the table. Stretch or run in place for two minutes – do anything from your list that you can accomplish in the available time frame.

Doctor’s Waiting Room

Some doctors’ offices do a better job of scheduling appointments than others. Depending on how much the office overbooks, you may have a very long wait. Take a hobby project with you such as crocheting or work that you need to complete within the next 5 days. You can answer email, text your mom, or use the time to find affiliate products your readers need and write (or draft) an email to send to them. Just don’t get so caught up in your hobby or work that you don’t hear the nurse call your name when it’s your turn to see the doctor.

Sitting Waiting on Carpool

When you’re sitting waiting on carpool, you need to pay attention to what is around you, but you can still get something done. If you’re parked, you can use that time to make phone calls to set up any appointments, make any reservations, and set up things for any of your to-do list items.

Doing things during this downtime is a great way to use those extra minutes that you’re not even aware of most of the time. That way when you’re doing with your day, you can sit back, watch TV if you want to, and not worry about anything being left undone.

After you have a look through the store, see any products you use and love as a caregiver, and think we should share them with everyone? Let me know!

Interested in making your own contribution to the Caregiver Cafe? There are guest blog spots open for December. Email assistrozjones@gmail.com for more info!

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!

Even More Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do

By Roz Jones

Mental health is one of the greatest gifts one can get for themselves. Your mind controls just about everything that happens in your life from your beliefs about yourself to how you handle what happens around you. The worst enemy you can ever have is not the person who hates you with passion. It is a weak mind. Opportunities can come your way and enemies can do all in their power to disrupt your life but how all that turns out depends on your mental strength. In other terms, your mind has the final say in almost everything your brain processes. However, this does not mean that you do not experience emotions. Rather, you are aware of how certain things affect you and devise ways to survive them, block them, or even use them to your own advantage.

Check out part 1 here and part 2 here!

Below are even more things mentally strong people don’t do:

They do not always see themselves as victims – they understand that they are prone to err, or that some people are victims too, just like them. Everyone is fighting a battle of some sort which then affects their behavior too. Sounds like being naïve right? Well, it is not. Even where you meet unreasonable people it will not harm you to understand that the world does have such people and chose peace. Understand where the other person is coming from or that what seems harmless to you may be harmful to them based on their experiences.

They don’t fear facing challenges – they understand that it is better to try and fail than to not try at all. Trying can bring unexpected victory or help you learn but, if you do not try you will always wonder how things would have turned out if you had tried. On top of that, the fear of trying to face that challenge or something similar will remain or worsen.

They don’t feel the world owes them – they understand that everyone has their own race to run and their own problems. As a result, people may not always be there to help when they are in need and that’s ok! We all have a right to choose what we do, how we do it, and when to do it for as long as we do not intentionally hurt others.

It’s here, I am so excited to share a new caregiver app called Circleof….This app will allow you to surround yourself with resources and experts from your community including ME!!!! As you are looking through the app, you will see my familiar face. I’m excited about this partnership and new ways to support you as you support your loved one. Here’s the link so you can explore the app. I would love your feedback and spread the word by sharing the link to family and friends.

Medicare Open Enrollment starts October 15th!

Navigating the Medicare Open Enrollment process can be confusing and difficult your first time, and I want to help out! For caregivers and their loved ones who are in need of advice and help planning their Medicare enrollment, I’m offering a discounted counseling session for just $97! Go to https://rozjonesent.com to sign up!

Interested in making your own contribution to the Caregiver Cafe? There are guest blog spots open for November and December. Email assistrozjones@gmail.com for more info!

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!

More Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do

By Roz Jones

Below are some more things mentally strong people don’t do. Check out part 1 here!

They don’t compete – their sense of purpose helps them understand that their journey is unique and is not changed by other people’s wins. After all, everything works out fine for everyone at the right time. Therefore, they are happy to celebrate other people’s wins, help where necessary, and keep moving forward. We are not racing against each other. The universe expects each individual to do what they have to do when they are needed to do it to make everything complete.

They don’t hold on to the past – they only take lessons and good memories from the past and let what does not add value to their lives go. They do not hold grudges or hold on to what could have been. Consequently, they heal easier. They understand that the past cannot be changed and, if they hold on to some events, they are most likely to pull them back and create unfavorable events in the present as well. In the end, you remain with a chain of bad events hanging on your back. Burdens!

They don’t seek validation – mentally strong people understand their value and that not everyone will understand their journey or actions. Therefore, they do not seek validation from others. They know where they are going and what it takes. Perhaps it will only make sense to some people as time goes by.

Check back next week for part 3!

Medicare Open Enrollment starts October 15th!

Interested in making your own contribution to the Caregiver Cafe? There are guest blog spots open for November and December. Email assistrozjones@gmail.com for more info!

Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!