Don’t mind me… I was just trying to capture a little bit of sun to bring to you from Florida.
Sunlight is essential to vitamin D and vitamin D is just plain essential…it’s not just about your bones.
Are you struggling with the winter blues? Are you longing for longer days, warmer temperatures, and some sun?
 
Trust me, I can totally relate. I have often joked that I really don’t belong in the Midwest.  My dark toned skin is perfect for the tropics; and my entire life I have muddled, no seriously struggled through winter. Even as kid I just didn’t like winter.  Maybe you can relate if you live this far north of the equator and Winter just isn’t your season.
 
I knew that Vitamin D deficiency was a real problem for people living in the North, but I didn’t realize it can really affect people in more than just feeling the winter blues. Lack in Vitamin D is linked to Depression, heart disease and dementia…to name a few. You can read more in this article.  For Midwesterners, or anyone north of Atlanta GA, it is important to get your Vitamin D and food isn’t enough, you must get in the sun. Details are outlined here.
 
Personally, I was feeling pretty down when I arrived in FL and just a few days in the sun was like magic. My energy levels improved, my mood lifted, and I can definitely tell a difference.  Be advised you don’t have to go to FL.  You can use a lamp.  I have one (but Florida was better. Hello sand between my toes).  I would recommend this model. I would also recommend starting to use it in November and use it regularly throughout the winter. 
 
Maybe you are struggling as you read this post.  I invite you to come back for my next post.  I will be sharing one of my favorite things for combating the Winter BLAHS. Hint: Its will make you think of Florida.

​How about what is hanging up in our minds?
 
About 3 years ago I came across the book: The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. I am sure by now you have heard of the book…heck, the author has her own Netflix series (#goals). The premise is that by simplifying and decluttering our spaces, we will be happier. Her method in decluttering is to gather items in your room, closet, drawers, etc., hold them and see if they “SPARK JOY”.  If they do not, you should let them go. 
 
So, I went through my closets, and cleared my junk drawers to the best of my ability.  It was cool, and definitely the perfect late winter project. But after the fact I couldn’t help but wonder if what I really needed to declutter was some long-standing ideas I had about myself. Were my conversations to myself SPARKING JOY? Was I being a cheerleader in my own life?
 
You see we spend the most time with ourselves.  The words we use, the tone we use towards ourselves is incredibly powerful. How could we alter our lives if we just started tidying up our internal dialogue? What if it were made simpler? What if it SPARKED JOY?
 
How do we do this you might ask? It’s a process just like cleaning out a drawer or closet.  Instead of taking out an article of clothing to see how it makes you feel you become mindful noticing your thoughts and how they make you feel.  In that mindfulness, take stock of your thoughts. You notice the words you speak to yourself.  Are they kind, and supportive.  Do you sound like a cheerleader to yourself in the game of life?
 
Mindfulness begins in simplicity and in slowing down.  Soon you will gain awareness, and through that awareness you begin to change your thoughts and you will create a fertile, more self-caring mind.  Over time you SPARK JOY for yourself.  It’s like a closet full of your feel good, SLAY IT attire.
 
Now this doesn’t happen overnight.  In fact, it will honestly be a lifelong commitment.
But isn’t it important to tidy up the most sacred space that we live in?
 
Hugs,
 
Courtney