self-care Archives — Kayla M Douglas

13Dec 2019 by Kayla No Comments

Five Ways to Respond to Rude Comments

life hacks

No one can reject you without your permission We all want to be more connected; genetically we are programmed to seek connection because in our more primitive forms we needed our tribe or group for survival. But when someone rejects you, you need to know how to respond to rude comments in order to keep your self-esteem in tact. Long ago, rejection meant being shunned, banned, or excommunicated. This type of punishment was worse than death. Our bodies are still programmed to respond to rejection negatively, even though we don’t require our peers’ help with basic needs like food, water, or shelter and security anymore. That explains why we feel our adrenaline spiking when we face rejection. Our hearts beat faster, and we feel our pulse quickening. In those moments,…

20Oct 2019 by Kayla 2 Comments

One Self-Hypnosis Technique to Manage Emotions

Life Coaching, life hacks, Mindset

Photo by Mark Daynes on Unsplash Do you ever feel yourself reacting emotionally to a situation and wish you had more control? Maybe your kids are screaming at you and instead of remaining calm, you give them what they want. Maybe someone pulls out in front of your car in traffic and you feel anger bubbling up inside. Or are you the one who can completely ignore your emotions when they emerge and have no idea what I’m talking about? Whichever is the case, we all have situations where emotions appear and we need to deal with them in a constructive way. Self-Hypnosis is a handy tool that can make that quite simple. How Does Self-Hypnosis Work? There are so many different ways to use self-hypnosis they wouldn’t even fit in one book…

23Mar 2019 by Kayla 2 Comments

Letter From a Person Living with Narcolepsy

Narcolepsy, Personal Story

Dear friend, Do you remember that time we had big plans to do something amazing on the weekend? I told you at the last minute that I really wanted to go but I just couldn’t do it. Well, I remember it. Because it was hard for me to make the decision to take care of myself instead of going to do something fun that I was really looking forward to. What did I do that day? Instead, I spent the day making sure I had healthy food lined up for the week. As part of my self-care routine, I took a few short controlled naps. Focused on physical and mental health, I drank a gallon of water and meditated. I arranged my calendar for the week so I would not…

01Feb 2019 by Kayla No Comments

Tell me how you take time to love yourself!

Narcolepsy

Write down the five things that are most important to you in the whole world. I'll wait a moment while you do that…. If you are anything like me, your list may include values like independence or peace; it may consist of goals or aspirations, or people like your family or friends. But tell me, are YOU on that list? (more…)

19Mar 2018 by Kayla 2 Comments

Loving Myself with Narcolepsy

Mindset

Maybe the most important lesson I have learned about feeling better is just loving myself with narcolepsy. I'm not going to lie and say it's easy. But I do think this is especially important for people with a chronic illness. I have ups and downs and I'm constantly working to try to do it more consistently. It's easy to get into negative patterns and tear ourselves down. It takes a lot of practice to reverse that so that we are consistently giving ourselves positive messages. (more…)

15Mar 2018 by Kayla No Comments

Positive Affirmations

Mindset

Harsh rays of sunlight are scratching at my eyelids, begging to be let in. I squint trying to lift the heavy lids and figure out where I am at. It doesn't feel like my pillow or my bed, and my window faces West. I'm never harshly woken like this in the morning. It's a hotel, and the "blackout curtains" they boasted about on their page do not reach the ceiling. It must be nearly 7:00 am anyway, so its time to wake up. Even on vacation, I don't dare sleep in and disturb my circadian rhythms. That would send me crashing into a cycle of narcolepsy symptoms that I don't like dealing with. I can read all the tips for wakefullness in the world and work on my sleep…