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25 Ways That I Am Nice to My Body

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When you experience chronic pain and health issues, it is difficult not to let the frustration, anger, and “why me?” situations get the best of you.  If you have experienced something similar, you likely know exactly what I am talking about.

I have spent the better half of my almost three years of chronic pain and unexplained health issues asking the “why me?” question over and over.  Do you know what I have learned?  Asking this question does not help the situation one bit.  Instead, it keeps the thoughts of negativity at the center of my mind.  And those negative thoughts certainly are not helping me to feel any better physically or mentally.

Now that I recognize this, I have been working hard to turn those thoughts around.  Am I always perfectly positive?  Heck no!  I still have my feeling sorry for myself moments.  But I am happy to say that my thoughts have become a lot more positive just in the past several months.  I cannot pin-point exactly how or why, but I think it has a lot to do with educating myself, reading positive content such as I call back my energy affirmations, and being kinder and gentler to my body.

As we are right in the heart of the time for being thankful and surrounding ourselves with love, I thought it was only fitting to share how I am being more positive, more proactive, and treating my body how it deserves to be treated.  It turns out that a little bit of self-love goes a long way towards feeling better!

self-care-quote25 Ways That I Am Nice to My Body

1. I spend at least 20 minutes each day reading a book for fun.

2. I get at least eight to nine hours of sleep almost every single night.

3. I drink at least 80 ounces of water per day (often 90-100).

4. I am proactive about my health and go to all recommended annual physician appointments.

5. I go on 30 to 45 minute walks at least three to four times per week.

6. I go completely make-up free at least one day on the weekend to give my skin a break.

7. On the other hand, I try to dress up and put on make-up one day on the weekend because I always feel better when I do.

8. I supplement for my health with things like probiotics, digestive enzymes, and cod liver oil.

9. I start my morning with some form of pasture-raised/grass-fed collagen either through warm lemon water with collagen peptides or bone broth.

10. I meal prep on the weekends to set myself up for a healthy week of eats and to reduce stress during the work week.

11. I ensure that I incorporate fiance, family, and friend time into every week.

12. I try to fill my plate with more vegetables than anything else (meat, fruit, etc.) as often as possible.

13. I eat all of the healthy fats!

14. I acknowledge when feelings of sadness, depression, and frustration regarding my health occur, and recognize that these feelings are “normal” and “okay” and not “bad.”

15. I eat snacks!  I know there are a million arguments for why one should eat snacks and why one shouldn’t, but for me, snacking works best.

16. I do my best to be off of my computer by 8:30 p.m. each night.

17. I limit my alcohol intake to the occasional cider or glass of wine.

18. I follow a Paleo diet, and I genuinely enjoy what I cook and eat.  I seriously do not miss bread or cheese.

19. I recognize that things on my “to do” list can wait.

20. I say “no” more often.  I am learning to be okay with not doing it all.

21. I am doing better at being patient with my body.  I realize that good health does not happen overnight, and that it is something I must continually work for.

22. I incorporate plenty of guilty pleasures into my life (reality TV, blog reading, etc.).

23. Lately I have been doing my best to focus on all of the positive things that my body can do instead of the negative things it cannot do.

24. This is a newer one for me, but I have been leaving my cell phone away from my bed at night in order to get a more restful sleep.

25. I take a deep breath (or sometimes 20).

I make the choice about whether or not I am upset and mad at how my body behaves.  And regardless of how my body responds, I definitely cannot and should not be upset about the way I treat it.  I am nice to my body.  I work hard to do what is best for my body and to bring it good health.  That is all I can do.

And with that, I am grateful for what I do have.

self-careBeing nice to your body through the struggles of chronic pain is so important! #selflove Click To Tweet

What do you do every day/week/month that is an act of kindness toward your body?

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{ 16 comments… add one }
  • Lauren November 25, 2015, 1:15 am
    I absolutely loved reading this post and am glad I started reading your blog! I can agree and relate to a lot of what you have said. I am also inspired by your efforts to heal yourself and being brave in moving away from being veggie - I am undergoing a similar transition for healing my gut and it is so good to relate to someone else doing the same! I do many of the things above you are doing, especially being nice to my body too and doing intuitively what will bring my body (and mind!) good health too!
    • ClnEatingVegGrl November 25, 2015, 10:35 am
      Thanks so much, Lauren. That means a lot! I know that transitioning from eating little or no meat to making it a substantial part of your diet can be tough, weird, and frustrating... but now it almost seems completely normal. So you will definitely get there! And I'm glad to hear you are being nice to your body, too! It's not always easy, but it's obviously important.
  • Joanna November 25, 2015, 6:21 am
    Love you! And I'm so happy you're doing what's best for Hannah! Joanna recently posted...best EVER pumpkin muffinsMy Profile
    • ClnEatingVegGrl November 25, 2015, 10:37 am
      Thank you, friend! It helps to have great and supportive people in my life. I know some people are not nearly as fortunate!
  • Kate November 25, 2015, 9:24 am
    I like the one about taking walks a lot. There is something so therapeutic of about them. Making a conscious effort to do your body good is so important. Kate recently posted...Chocolate and caffeine (WIAW)My Profile
    • ClnEatingVegGrl November 25, 2015, 10:41 am
      Yes! I am a runner at heart, but my body doesn't love it. Even walks can be painful at times, but I generally always feel mentally better after them. I try not to go crazy and walk every single day (again with my body rebelling), but fitting them in several times per week has helped me to feel a lot better about myself over this past year.
  • Summer November 27, 2015, 4:28 am
    This is so inspiring. Really simple and nice ways to treat your body good ♥ summerdaisy.net Summer recently posted...Life LatelyMy Profile
    • ClnEatingVegGrl November 27, 2015, 9:05 am
      Thank you, Summer. I hope you found some inspiration to do something nice for yourself!
  • dixya @ food, pleasure, and health November 27, 2015, 7:12 am
    so many beautiful things..seriously, sometimes deep breathing and saying NO is the best thing for your body, mind, and soul..you are amazing.
    • ClnEatingVegGrl November 27, 2015, 9:06 am
      Absolutely! Those are not always easy things to do, but our bodies will thank us for it!
  • Jen@Jpabstfitness November 28, 2015, 12:53 pm
    When I was diagnosed as a Diabetic, I felt the same way- why me? But now, I'm trying to embrace the crap stack I have been given and doing everything I can do to make things better and my body running better. Jen@Jpabstfitness recently posted...Thanksgiving {2015}My Profile
    • ClnEatingVegGrl November 29, 2015, 4:14 pm
      That is the only way to do it, right? I think we all go through somewhat of a cycle of grief and then we realize we just need to fight like hell to feel better!
  • Ashlee November 29, 2015, 6:36 pm
    I LOVE this Hannah! Such a great read. I am so happy for you and how far you have come. I know from my eating issues, being able to love yourself and your body can seriously be more challenging than some people think. It's very inspiring to know that it is possible to reach that stage and I look up to you for it! I have also made more progress with my eating and being able to "enjoy" foods that I had previously restricted myself from and noted as "bad" in my head. That is one thing I do to give my body love. Moderation is definitely the key. Thanks for sharing your progress Hannah and I can't wait to read more about your journey:)
    • ClnEatingVegGrl November 30, 2015, 10:49 am
      That is awesome, Ashlee! I am so glad to hear that things are improving for you. You are right.. it is a work in progress. But we can all totally get there!
  • Mel December 4, 2015, 6:08 am
    This is lovely! I've been trying to respect my body with living a everything in moderation ( Bad stuff not included) and just trying to be easier on my body. I sometimes feel like I'm a bully to myself, pointing out everything that's wrong with me, sometimes you just have to look at yourself in the mirror and say " stop being such a vain monkey!" and just be happy with who you are and what you can do.
    • ClnEatingVegGrl December 4, 2015, 7:18 am
      Yes! It also helps to remind yourself that you only have one life and you are in charge of making it a good one!
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