Week Four (30th July - 5th August): Powers of The Self

Remember if you are blogging daily each point is a daily topic BUT if you are blogging weekly you DO NOT have to incorporate all these themes but instead use them as inspiration for your own response to the theme!

All human beings have power.  Sometimes that power is taken from us- by others or sickness or else we chip away at our own power.  But that which we had, we can also take back. 

This week's theme focuses on those powers of the self, 
Consider each of these seven powers in terms of what they mean to you, how their meaning has or has not changed over the years, the degree to which you do/will choose to empower yourself, the impact these powers have on your quality of life, choices and recovery and the ways in which you are trying or could try to take back or develop these powers further. 

You may consider one power of the self for every day this week if you are blogging daily or consider them as a whole in your weekly post: -

- Self Esteem

- Self Worth

- Self Confidence

- Self Respect

- Self Belief

- Self Acceptance

- Self Love

Week Three (23rd-29th July): Self Empowerment

Remember if you are blogging daily each point is a daily topic BUT if you are blogging weekly you DO NOT have to incorporate all these themes but instead use them as inspiration for your own response to the theme!

Week Three: Self-Empowerment

“Empowerment refers to increasing strength,

investing with power and/or to equip or supply with ability”. 

We may reflect on our journeys thus far and recognize teachers, family members, friends, songs, classes, activities which have empowered us.  But how have we or do we or can we empower ourselves?  There are so many ways in which we can do this, but we first must choose to do this.  Consider the points below if you wish to in responding to this prompt or if you are writing daily you’ll find seven separate points.  It is entirely up to you how often you blog and what you choose to write on.  The act of blogging itself is one of self-empowerment!

-       How do YOU define empowerment? What does empowerment make you think of?  Can you identify times in your life when you have been empowered by others or by yourself?  How were those experiences?

-       Using your voice – consider the act of talking, speaking out, writing, painting, expressing your opinions and beliefs in terms of self-empowerment

-       Learning – do you feel empowered by your learning?  Are there things you can choose to learn solely for the result of empowering you?

-       Physical care and nutrition as a means of self-empowerment – choosing to eat a broad and balanced food intake, fun healthy exercise and activity, pampering activities, tattoo or piercing, embracing your body, body image

-       Seeking to have your emotional needs met – empowering yourself to say or ask for what you need and to find ways to have those needs met (i.e. asking for a hug, expressing how you feel, asking for help, putting your needs out there rather than only considering others)

-       Mental self-empowerment – overcoming negative thinking patterns, challenging old messages and faulty beliefs – working towards changing them so you can embrace and celebrate who you are and know your value.

-       Spiritual self-empowerment – it may be you are religious in some way or subscribe to a widely recognized set of beliefs or it may be about nourishing your spiritual self in terms of self-belief, hope, faith, love and what these concepts mean to you and how they can be tools to empower yourself.

Week Two (16th - 22nd July): Self Nurturing

Remember if you are blogging daily each point is a daily topic BUT if you are blogging weekly you DO NOT have to incorporate all these themes but instead use them as inspiration for your own response to the theme!

Week Two: Self-Nurturing

In order to experience a life which is balanced, healthy and nourishing we must nurture ourselves.  This week’s theme allows you to explore what this means for you, for those in your life and to consider how things can be improved in this area.  This might be a challenge in which you reflect on your journey or perhaps it means taking stock and making plans for radical changes.  It is entirely up to you how you address this theme.  For those who wish to blog daily or would like some direction as to what they might consider for this week’s challenge here are seven pointers: -

-       What does it mean and involve when you nurture others? Do you apply the same definition and tools in nurturing yourself?

-       Consider what you give to others – are you able to give to yourself in the same way? What stops you? How can you overcome this?

-       Consider how you feel about yourself – do you feel worthy?

-       Do you respond to positive events (doing well at school or work; getting a compliment etc.) and negative events (arguments with others; things not going as you wish them to) in a way which is self-nurturing?

-       Consider self-care and self-neglect.

-       Identifying warning signs for self-neglect and/or poor self-care

-       Considering these areas, in addition to what you already know, builds a greater self-awareness.  Consider ways in which you can behave in a more nurturing manner towards yourself and perhaps build some reminders/affirmations/mantras/facts which will help you to put this into practice.

Week One (9th - 15th July): Self Care and Self Soothing

Remember if you are blogging daily each point is a daily topic BUT if you are blogging weekly you DO NOT have to incorporate all these themes but instead use them as inspiration for your own response to the theme!

The theme is broad deliberately for you to explore it in whichever way best suits you.

It may be you are beginning or early in recovery and want to look at the barriers to self-care and how you can overcome them.

Perhaps you are well in recovery and making the transition towards returning to work school etc. and wish to explore concerns in this area, self-worth, and self-esteem and explore ways you can embrace self-caring behaviours as life skills?

Maybe you want to reflect on your journey this far and discuss self-care in terms of where you began, to where you are now, and where you wish to go.

It is entirely up to you how you address this theme.

For those who wish to blog daily or would like some direction as to what they might consider for this week’s challenge here are seven pointers: -

-Barriers to Self-Care and Self Soothing

-Mental Aspects

-Emotional Aspects

-Physical Aspects

-Spiritual Aspects

-Balancing Self Soothing and Connections with others (social aspects)

-Create a poem, piece of art; find a quote, an image, a poem that speaks to you about self-care and self-soothing.