I got the idea for a sound self-care blog post focus from a 14 day challenge that I’m participating in, on my social media platform. Some of the challenges so far has been listening to your favorite love songs and watching a chick flick. Those ideas made me realize that as much as a I wrote about self-care last year, I have never used watching tv/movies or listening to music as self-care ideas. With that said, I decided to focus on sound self-care for the next four months. Last year my self-care focus was monthly and each week I provided seven different focus. This year my goal is to blog monthly so therefore I will provide seven self-care ideas involving sound each month for four months. I’m sure this isn’t news to anyone but I’m not exactly sure what these challenges will be yet. It’s ironic because around the middle of last year I had some difficulty creating self-care ideas each week. It was the main reason I decided to take a step back from blogging consistently, I was hoping the break would ignite my creativity.
Although I never specifically focused on sound self-care at any point last year, I did provide some ideas that involved sounds. For example, guided meditation, listening to podcasts, and singing bowls but each of those ideas fell under a variety of self-care umbrellas such as motivation or relaxation. Sounds are around us every day all day and most of us have the ability to tune in and out depending on what we choose to give our energy and time to. I think sound is a method we can use to center and relax ourselves so using it as a self-care focus is very fitting. Usually I would encourage my readers to participate in each of these challenges throughout the week but the choice is yours. You can engage in one idea each day this week or come back to this blog and choose an idea that will benefit you based on what you’re currently going through.
MUSIC I think music can be a form of self-care for anyone. We can easily get lost in one of our favorite songs or albums and play a song or album on repeat and not get tired of it. I personally have a few albums that I love and I know I will never get tired of them. Sometimes based on our moods, we know exactly what song or album we need to listen to. A few months ago I was meeting a friend for brunch and for some reason I felt like Kanye’s latest album Donda, would be perfect for my drive to the restaurant. It’s interesting how music can have that affect on us.
MOVIES/TV I think the reason I never used movies or TV as a form of self-care last year is because most of us spend hours and hours each day watching tv and I wanted my self-care ideas to be much more meaningful. This is another form of self-care that plays a role in how we feel. For example, I’m a HUGE Sex and the City fan and even though the original show ended in 2004, every now and then I feel inspired to binge watch a few episodes with a glass of wine or tea. I also feel the same inspiration with certain chick flicks or drama shows like Grey’s Anatomy.
YOUTUBE In full transparency years ago I use to be obsessed with the unboxing videos that Myliek Teele (the founder of Curlbox) posted on her channel about the products in her monthly subscription box. It probably sounds weird but listening to the videos did something to me. I’m not sure if it was the excitement in her voice or if I was inspired by what she accomplished but sometimes just listening to her talk about each hair care product was self-soothing.
PODCAST I’ve talked about podcast on my blog at least two or three times in the past and similar to the above, I use to love listening to Myleik’s podcast because they were inspiring. Some of the topics she covered were networking, what to leave in the previous year when we were entering a new year, how to set goals, how to gain momentum, etc. I actually use to listen to her podcast when going on long trips because I use to get lost in the information she would share.
SOUND MACHINE I’m probably in the minority with this one but I like a little background noise when I’m trying to go to sleep. Nothing loud, just a hint of something or something soothing like white noise. I use to enjoy the sound of wind or rain on my sound machine and sometimes I would do laundry at night so I can listen to the sound of the washer and the dryer or the dishwasher. My mind gets flooded with thoughts at night and the background noise helps me focus on one specific thing instead of several things at once.
THE SOUND OF SILENCE I know not everyone is into dead silence but sometimes I really love it, especially when I’m driving. As much as I love music sometimes I’m not in the mood for it so I drive in silence and get lost in my thoughts or listen to the tires or other cars on the road.
BACKGROUND NOISE I love this option when I’m home alone and need to get things done around the house. I’m the kind of person that can’t miss a second of any part of the show I’m watching, even if I’ve seen it before. When I need to get things done I usually put on a show that I don’t need to pay attention to. My go to is the Golden Girls, I’ve been watching it consistently since 2000 so I don’t need to see what’s going on. It’s entertaining for me to have it on as background noise while I’m doing chores or getting other things done around the house.
So it appears that this post has turned into sounds that I use for self-care since I shared my personal story with each category. Maybe you can relate to some of these ideas and if not, maybe you’ve gained some inspiration and are willing to try some of these on your own. Just remember that the sound shouldn’t stress you, be distracting, annoy you, or make you feel frazzled or irritated because its’ too loud or annoying. Whatever sound you choose should resonate with you and put in a good place emotionally.
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