Week 9 of 52 small changes

[OddSocksHighHeels]

The aim is to carve out half an hour of alone time each day.

Build it into your schedule - possibly by getting up half an hour earlier or going to bed half an hour later without sacrificing sleep. If that isn't possible then look at other opportunities you have in the day - the book suggests taking your lunch break from work alone or, if you're a SAHM, then get somebody to babysit for an hour for you everyday. Because that's easy if you're a single parent but alone time while kids are in bed should be easier!

Switch off your phone, laptop and TV at 8pm (I'm not going to do this!) and don't have them on for an hour or so after waking.

It gives examples of things you might want to do during the time you've set aside: going to the gym, taking a walk, reading, being outside in nature, taking a class, listening to music, going to the theatre or a concert or going to a museum, taking on a project around the home (maybe building that shed that none of us did in week 3?), organising your wardrobe or going to get a massage/facial/manicure/pedicure.

I'm actually pretty good at this already though I might try to get some new stuff in there too that I don't normally do. But I think I'll try to re-focus on getting better sleep for the most part.

Reminders of the previous weeks: drinking more water, getting more sleep, getting routine activity into the day, keeping a food diary, being more positive, taking a multivitamin, having a germ-free buffer zone and eating 4-6 portions of veg each day.

A link to last week: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/general_health/2570652-Week-8-of-52-Small-Changes?pg=1&order=

Well this is a lovely thought. May stay that most days, just a thought!! I really crave alone time too, but my life doesn't really allow for it at the moment.
It's making me think about it though so that's a step in the right direction!

Weather too horrid to walk anywhere today.

Water rubbish, multivit. tick, cucumber and tomatoes at lunchtime, clementines and dates this afternoon, green beans and cauliflower tonight.

Lots of positivity as we worked out that we might be able to move into our house 2nd week in May.

Alone time is now

Oh, I missed this one! So, headspace for 30 mins every day! I like that, I'm in.
Thank you oddsocks, you're a trooper to keep this challenge for us!

DrDiva I think the small changes bit means that it might be 10 mins or more like 5. For me, it might really depend on the day.

Last night I had rubbish sleep , I think I am at that time of life, I woke up at 3am hot and then felt all bloaty and couldn't sleep till gone 5am. I think it's pmt. Grrrr. I haven't had af for nearly 2 months, so it's going to be a corker .

Today, I have done 15mins Headspace, but dd2 was awake, so I was half watching her on the monitor (not really 30mins to myself, meditating...). I have a day at home with lots of paperwork, have bribed myself with the promise of a yoga dvd, so that's my half hour. The rest of the week is quite frantic; tomorrow I am at school, weds dd2 has a SALT appt, fri a long meeting. Unlikely, to manage quite so much.

You know quirky it didn't even occur to me to try for even five minutes

Hope the sleep improves again for you.

Have had lots of water today and slept well last night. Have had parsnip soup, a banana and bubble and squeak with lots of veg in. Going to have an apple in a minute too so not bad. Have failed at time alone and activity but I'm going to walk to the dentist and back tomorrow which will tick both those boxes!

Thanks, DrDiva. Hope you manage some time this week, but don't beat yourself up about it if you don't .

Good news about your house Bewitched.

I have managed a quick nap this pm, to try to make up for sleep and have done some yoga and lots of walking. My philosophy is to do stuff when you can and not fret when you can't. It will all even itself out.

Good philosophy quirky

It is good news about the house. Not getting stressed about that is my big, ongoing challenge at the moment.

That waking up hot in the middle of the night is a pain.

I'm past that now, still get the bloated feeling but I think that's because I love bread!

Pointless you're doing really well on most of the changes, try to not think of the bits you don't manage as failure.

Especially as you already have a catch up plan.

We were saying ^^ up there that the bigger picture is more important than everything measured daily.

quirky I'm really bloated too. I came off the pill a few months ago and now get horrible bloating and feel really low around my period. Not good.

pointless I thought you were classing the dentist as alone time before I realised you meant the walk there and back.

bewitched great news about the new house! I hope it all goes smoothly for you.

Thanks OddSocksI

Lots of planning by the kids for house warming party.

No mention of help moving in!

Little loves.

Sorry about random I ?

Oddsocks I am on the mini pill (can't take oestrogen) but think I might need to have a check up as I think I'm supposed to be regular to stay on it. I was managing to stay regular with agnus castus supplements but think I might be past that. I am 45, so probably perimenopause .

Woke up hot again, but I must have gone straight back to sleep, as I got cross that dd2 was up and then realised it was morning! I have managed 15mins Headspace this morning, but that will probably be my alone time today.

Pointlessfan you are doing really well, I think we need to remember that changes can take time to happen.

Ha! The dentist is definitely not my idea of alone time but I had a lovely 20 min walk each way in the sunshine looking at all the spring flowers that are starting to bloom.
Thanks for the encouragement everyone.

Sleep completely to pot. Wrist is so painful it is keeping me awake, heaven knows what is going on. Hence I am here to take my mind off it!
Hope you are all snoring away happily.

Ow, DrDiva that sounds really painful. I had some horrible cramp in my wrists the other week, which went away just as bizarrely as it came. Here's hoping it goes away for you soon.

Sleep not too bad here, I keep waking up hot, but at least I seem to be going back to sleep fairly easily. Lots of veg eaten, 15 mins Headspace every morning, vits taken and some activity every day. I'm taking dd2 to speech therapy this morning, which is a bit of a walk so it should make up for not walking as much during half-term.

quirky I came off it because I thought the hormones weren't helping with depression and didn't want to replace it with more hormonal contraception but my periods have been getting worse each month and I'm starting to get PMT which I never used to get. I've spent the last day with cramps that got so bad that I was sweating, shivering, throwing up, feeling dizzy and close to passing out. I do wish I wasn't a woman at times.

Have you been to the doctor DrDiva? That doesn't sound good at all.

oddsocks and DrDiva that sounds miserable, hope you both feel better soon!

I have been doing ok on most counts, but not the alone time one (or sleep).
DP and I have been to IKEA this morning and are now in the car home. I have eaten a load of mini daim bars and I feel a bit sick.. Shame they don't count towards my fruit and veg total, but I reckon all the walking counts as exercise!

Oddsocks I originally went on the pill as my periods were like yours and I had started at university and couldn't afford the time off each month. I had previously fainted at sixth form . Later, I went on the progesterone only pill following migraines and after pg a dvt (don't I sound the picture of health!). At my last check the nurse asked if my periods were regular, as if not, it wasn't suitable... I think I would like to skip to no periods without going through perimenopause or menopause symptoms, please.

Spuriouser I'm sure all the walking counteracts the chocolate!

Carpel tunnel DrDiva? Hope it feels better soon.

Nice one about the house move Bewitched, very exciting I'm sure.

Strangely I'm fine with my period bar the pmt and first day but I feel like you do Oddsocks every ovulation time. It is sickening agony. Only started since having kids and went away when I took the pill, since I've stopped it, it's come back. I hate taking hormonal stuff though.

Been spending a lot of time reading at night so getting my half hour. Sleep not so good, dc have had a cough. Again. Vegetables and water fallen back on a bit but will make an effort today.

Definitely not carpal tunnel, Sirona - I have that too (combination of job and pregnancy brought it back) and this feels very different plus is on the wrong side of the wrist. Has been a bit better today so hopefully just a short-lived thing. Not terribly compatible with my job though!

Sympathies to all those suffering with af it's a bugger.

Oh god, to all of you suffering with periods. I used to have days when I really couldn't leave the house - there was no combination of products that could cope for more than an hour some days.

I never had any of the actual pain that some of you are describing though.

So totally unreasonable that you are expected to just carry on regardless.

As has been said so many times, but it does bear repeating; can you imagine how different things would be if men went through this.

I hope your painful wrist gets better soon DrDiva

Oh don't get me started on that bewitched! You know it would be sorted by now if it was men suffering. Or, if not sorted, better managed and not just expected to be dealt with. I used to get really heavy periods as well, a super plus tampon and night time sanitary towels but still soaking through onto chairs at school. Mortifying as a teen.

It was weird though that I spent so much time throwing up and passing out from how strong the cramps were then I didn't feel a single bit of pain in a couple of days of being in labour. I'd rather it was the other way round tbh!

Oddsocks yup, me too, horribly heavy when I was younger, and again when I was older until I started taking agnus castus, but now that doesn't seem to be enough, either. Mine still hasn't come, I keep getting pmt symptoms of bloating and cramps and then... nothing. It's all over the place .

Dd2 was sent home from school after lunch yesterday as she had been sick. Has been fine at home, but I'm really strict with dcs when they've been sick , so she only had water to drink and then a piece of pitta bread for dinner. It meant she woke up in the night, as she hadn't eaten enough. Fitbit reckons I've had 7hrs, but they were not restful. On the positive I was barely getting 6 hrs when we started, so quite an improvement!

Eating all over the place yesterday, I had barely eaten much as rushing around all morning, when I had to collect dd2. Nothing like the threat of dcs being sick to put you off eating, so consequently, I grabbed a few bits over the afternoon rather than ate a proper lunch. Have had greek yoghurt with berries and flaxseed mix for breakfast to try to make sure I eat properly today.

Sorry to hear about people with pain of one kind or another.
I've lost my voice! Doing well with veg, water and vitamins though.

That might be exactly why it's so difficult for other people, men, to deal with.

We all have so many different variations of pain, physical inconvenience, mental inconvenience.

It varies from one of us to another and it varies from each of us from one month to another.

Who the fuck designed this?

It's not surprising it's only recently we've had the energy to fight back.