From New Year's resolution to daily re-centering

I remember in my pre-kid days I would go somewhere lovely on New Years day, usually near water, and write my resolutions or manifestations. It was a way of starting a fresh, and being open to the possibilities of what a new year would bring. Maybe it’s kids, maybe it’s the pandemic, but this year definitely did not feel like that sort of a New Year’s Day.

The one thing I did do though was a Hypopressives practice. There is something about doing a practice that makes me feel that even if the rest of the day is hard work at least I’ve gifted myself a piece of me, being me in my own body, working to make it healthier. Let’s face it with young kids in the mix, there are not many days that do not, at some point, feel like hard work! When I have had some time really being in my body, it gives me resource to deal with the what feels like constant negotiations with the small people in my life! As a former professional dancer I had a need for a daily physical check-in. I did this for 20 years in a daily ballet class, which was so ingrained in me that I felt lost without it. Almost like a moving meditation it was how I knew where my head was as well as my body. I thought this was a dancer thing, but I’ve come to see that we all need this, a daily physical greeting of one’s body and mind is just so crucial to being present, with ourselves, in our families, our work and our life.

The name re-centre resonated with me for 2 reasons. Firstly in the literal sense, Hypopressives is the most effective way of rebuilding connection and function to one’s core/centre postpartum - that I have ever experienced. And secondly, it is like that little option on a GPS map to “re-centre” when you zoom out of your navigation, it is a space to bring you back to yourself and put you back on your way. So for me resolutions are not where I am at, but rather focusing on coming back to myself daily, whether that is a physical practice or a walk in the fresh air, really taking in the beauty that is always there.

I hope that you can find a way to make the time to connect with yourself, it doesn’t have to be long, but that daily greeting is probably one of the best things we can do not just for ourselves but also for those we come into contact with.

Sending love and good wishes for the year ahead Simone x