Recently I was hospitalized with a disorder caused (or at least aggravated) by stress....and when I got home I decided to add in several more stress relievers to my day (as well as the damned pills they prescribed!!! And I discovered that giving myself 30 minutes of time to do NOTHING but sew, no tv, radio, podcast or (most importantly!) people! Just me and the cloth and the scissors, pins, needles and sewing machine. I discovered that this was the most calming thing of all...
The important thing is not to feel guilty for taking time for yourself, nor to have any sense of "having to " reach a certain goal or certain time frame. I know a lot of people use yoga for this, but that never worked for me. Instead just calmly cutting and sewing and not feeling like I need to get anywhere or justify the activity to anyone at all, getting totally into the flow of sewing movements and focussing only on those, seeing it as an important activity for health. Breathing into it... This is what works.
Now I know it would not be calming if you couldn't sew! you'd just get frustrated...but I'm sure everyone that reads this blog is a sewer..oops I don't mean a drain!!! No! but the calming quiet contemplative activity WILL drain away your tension. Don't see this activity as an excuse, but rather a very important medicine for your life! Try it! A full 30 minutes, at a particular time each day, with NO pressure, completely quiet, your space, your time...nobody can interrupt. Feel your tangled thoughts smooth out, your heart rate drop, your breathing become calm and rhythmic... AND let me know how this works for you! I'm sure hoping this will keep me out of hospital!
And, if you have been, thanks for reading. Elizabeth
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7 comments:
Oh, I agree. For me, going for a walk in the trees also does it, but nothing like making quilt slabs or just improve blocks. Also, I watched this video today and came away totally delighted and forgetting all the things that were bothering me. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCxsjWnvZD4&t=1112s
It is a known fact that handwork lowers blood pressure. Mental health is as vital as physical, maybe even more. Psalm 38 shows the connections and what guilt and things like it can do to the body!
thanks again, and blessings
Elsie
Absolutely true!!! I use it as my medidcine too!
thank you for your comments - Elsie and Teresita!
The beauty of sewing is that you can do it anywhere anytime...don't even need an internet connection!
Sewing cools the mind....and then the creative flow is released...
samu hara no oo nabara
when the mind cools, a field of waves arises.
Elizabeth
I have found such relief in eliminating imposed deadlines. I only respond to a call if I have something that fits. Working towards a deadline was very stressful for me. It helps to recognize our own needs and find the solutions that work for us. Here’s to good health for you!
Beautiful.
I'm sorry you had to be hospitalized - hope you're OK now! I have been working on a piece with some hand embroidery - am finding it to be very relaxing and almost meditative.
Thank you, thank you for this post. It is the right words at the right time. I have a chronic life threatening health condition. Since we live rural, it is always dicey if there will be anyone in the ER who knows how to treat my condition... I understand stressful, but never seem to find the right things to calm... I will be trying this sage advice. :) <3 Blessings,
Karen
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