The Manifesto 18#
Many people believe that self-care means taking a bath, doing meditation or generally participating in an activity on your own. This is not always the case……..
Self-care doesn’t always need to be a lone pursuit. Many of my clients on tour find themselves without their usual social networks or environments and this often has an impact on their mental health. However, I have noticed a common self-care ritual with touring performers is talking on Skype. Skyping family, friends, partners and therapists. Building an online community of mutual support can be calming and energizing. If you have another friend on tour or even not working, starting a self-care practice together may be helpful. You could also make a group of like-minded people and schedule regular check-ins. Your self-care tribe can have a huge impact on how you handle challenges and how quickly you recover. Simply changing the focus from ‘me’ to ‘we’ can help us with our emotion and physical well being.
If an online support community appeals to you but you’d prefer it to be scheduled and lead by someone, then please get in touch with me. I’m considering starting some group get-togethers which will be about checking in, sharing experiences and feeling connected. These are not therapy groups, more a self-care tribe. The groups will be small so get in touch and grab a spot if you think it’s something you’d like to try.
Kareena. x
Kareena Hodgson was a full-time professional international circus performer for 20 years, who is now an accredited Counsellor/life coach and The Manifesto is her professional consultancy. She is uniquely suited to working in the mental health space within the performing arts. She is also the Senior Editor, Executive Coach & Moral Backbone of Carnival Cinema.
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