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As we all see our lives going through changes during this period of distancing, it can be easy to focus on our limitations. We think about the places we can’t go right now, or the things we can’t see, or the people we can’t be with. A walk outdoors can be the perfect way to allow ourselves to recognize the best of what we still have. When we approach with an attitude of mindfulness and presence, a walk can fulfill so many of our needs. While staying at home, stagnation, a lack of change, can be oppressive. It can be easy to tune out of our lives.

The promise of nature is one of constant change, life, and growth, all things we desperately need right now. Taking a walk outside can offer us an escape from our over-familiar surroundings and fill us up on so many reserves that we’ve been lacking.

Here are a few ways you can bring mindfulness to your outdoor time; with some attentiveness, walks can become a practice that helps to support your overall health and happiness.

1. Listen.

When you go outside do you usually listen to music or a podcast on your headphones, or take a call from a friend? In times of stress the prospect of silence can be a threatening one; opening ourselves up to quiet reflection when we are battling so many stressors isn’t always our first choice. But if you allow yourself the chance, you might start to notice many sounds you’ve been missing out on. Let the soft rush of the wind blowing through the trees bring you comfort. Try to count out all of the different bird calls you can hear and see if it doesn’t make you feel a bit less lonesome. You’ll start to realize that very rarely are the outdoors silent— instead, they are bursting with life.

2. Smell.

We are in the midst of springtime, when nature brings out the best it has to offer us. Although we might not be able to take advantage of all our usual springtime activities, our access to nature’s bouquet is never closed. As you walk around your neighborhood, don’t forget to stop and inhale. My favorite scents on my walk are the earthy scent of junipers wafting in the wind and the sweetness of the honeysuckle bushes I pass. What are yours?

3. Observe.

You might be used to seeing and appreciating the beautiful nature you encounter on your walks. But what if you really started to study it? Try taking pictures or sketching plants and birds and you’ll be surprised by how much variety is all around us. It’s amazing how many different flowers, trees, and animals are in your neighborhood when you start looking out for them. The Cornell Ornithology Lab has a bird identifier so you can start to learn the names and calls of birds you’ve been seeing and hearing your entire life. You can start taking note of all the flowers that are blooming with the PictureThis app, which will tell you what any plant or flower is when you take a photo of it. Deepening our understanding of the species around us can help us feel more invested in our environment and add a level of fulfillment and reciprocity to the time we spend outside.

4. Connect.

Just because we’re distancing doesn’t mean we have to give up our human connection to others. If you see someone out in their yard or pass a person walking alone, take the time to say hello. This can be a lonely time for all of us and a few kind words might change their entire day. It can be so helpful just to remind ourselves, and others, that we are not alone.

5. Play with your routine.

Going out at different times of day can be a great way to vary your routine and see different things. If you normally go out in the afternoon, try getting up a little early to experience crisp, refreshing morning air. If you normally take morning walks try going out in the evening, when things are winding down and the sunset begins to paint the sky. As the days get hotter in many climates, switching to a morning or evening walk can also keep you more protected and ensure you enjoy your time outside.

Getting outside can be such a gift, and reflecting on all that nature has to offer can be a powerful remedy against feelings of stagnation, boredom and restlessness. Coming back to nature as a practice has always left me filled with gratitude, peace, and a deep sense of belonging and taking the time to experience it fully can grant us some much needed balance and movement now when we need it the most.

While many of us are working hard to stick to our budgets, it can seem like an unnecessary burden to work in space for self-care. Our instinct can be to forget ourselves, put our own wellbeing or enjoyment on the back burner because it feels less vital to us. Sometimes it can seem like the stereotypical self-care measures, like vacations or spa treatments, are out of reach financially for us.

But self-care can come in all forms: walking outside, staying hydrated, and getting rest are all self-care practices, and none of them cost anything. Self-care can look like so many different things; the most important thing is simply to invest some of your time and resources back into yourself. Here are a few items that can help you on your self-care journey without the stressful price tag.

Start With Gratitude: Daily Gratitude Journal

With daily prompts to think about all that we have, this journal can be an easy tool to access more gratitude and happiness even in stressful and difficult times.

Buy now on Amazon

Himalayan Salt Lamp

There are theories that salt lamps can help cleanse and deionize the air around them and even help contribute to better sleep. They’re also a genuinely peaceful piece to add to any room, bathing spaces in a soft warm glow.

Buy now on Amazon

Dr. Teal’s Lavender Epsom Salt Foaming Bath

This bath mix combines lavender foam with healing epsom salts for the perfect restorative bath. Epsom salts can reduce aches and soreness and the lavender essential oils can help soothe frayed nerves and calm a restless mind.

Buy now on Amazon

Pioneer Photo Album

Working on a little project can be a great form of self care, and everyone can benefit from spending a little time reflecting on their favorite people and places. For the price of this album and some cheap drugstore photo prints, you can start putting together a book of your favorite memories to look at even when life is challenging.

Buy now on Amazon

Que Bella Witch Hazel Mud Mask

At ten dollars for a six-count or under two dollars for individuals, this is one of the cheapest ways to give your skin a little care. The witch hazel is extremely soothing, smells great, and helps send a message to yourself that you’re worth pampering.

Buy now on Target.com

Live Succulents

For under five dollars, you can order a little cactus that only needs sparing water and sunlight and will bring some life to your home. You can plant them in pots, old candle jars, or even a mug you don’t use very often; to add some personality. You’d be surprised how much taking care of something simple like a plant can boost your mood.

Buy now on Amazon

Mrs. Meyer’s Honeysuckle Scented Lotion

We are all washing our hands so much more right now which means our skin can get dryer much faster without consistent care. Keep a lotion on hand (like this one, in a luscious honeysuckle scent) to make sure you don’t end up with painful cracked skin.

Order now on Amazon

Paperage Lined Journal

We experience so much in our day-to-day lives and often, without accountability, we forget to reflect on and honor our feelings and reactions. Try investing in a journal to pay more attention to your cares, worries and thoughts. It’s a great way to look back as you continue to grow, and to recognize patterns you might not have noticed otherwise.

Order now on Amazon

Afoot and Lighthearted: A Journal for Mindful Walking

This part book, part journal is an easy way to encourage yourself to make the most of a practice as simple as going outdoors. If you’re feeling bored or checked out of your daily life, this guided journal can be a great way to bring some mindfulness and joy back to your day-to-day.

Order now on Amazon

As many of us are close to completing our first month under increased safety restrictions, isolation, and stress, I’ve seen so many people striving for positivity and encouragement. It’s made me so proud to see people focusing on the good being done, lifting each other up, and keeping hope alive for themselves and others. Working to see joy and positivity in the face of an unprecedented crisis like this one has such value. But it’s not the full story.

It’s important not to let our efforts to stay positive rob us of valid emotions that are less easy to process. The hard truth is that all of us have lost something during this time. We’ve lost freedom, flexibility, routines, time with each other, and many of us have lost jobs and even loved ones. As much as it might be easier to push through and not give ourselves time to reflect, to put off processing our emotions until we’re out of crisis or try to channel all of our energy into being productive, we owe it to ourselves to take a moment and honor this loss.

Because it is a loss.

All of us have had our lives altered, in some ways forever, by this pandemic. There’s no use trying to avoid it: we’re all mourning something right now. This is one of the most devastating times our country has faced as a whole as well as one of the hardest for most of us personally. This is pain, this is trauma. We’ve said goodbye to so many facets of our former lives.

I was looking at old photos today and came across a snapshot of a girls’ night out with me and my friends. All of us looked so happy, and it’s odd to think that we took something so simple for granted. It can be hard to think about how long it will be before I’m able to do normal things like go out with my friends again, before I’m able to watch a baseball game or get my nails done or see a movie on a rainy day. It might seem like I’m being intentionally somber for no purpose, or that I’m wasting time and energy being upset about things that are unimportant and losses that we will get back someday. It’s easy to shame ourselves for being sad about the “small” things when there’s so much sickness and death around us, but those small things that make up our lives are important and it is significant that we have lost them. Don’t shame yourself out of acknowledging real pain.

The only way we can start building a vision for the future is by letting go of that which came before. When we’ve enabled ourselves to say goodbye to things we’ve lost it allows us to place more hope in the future. We know that someday things will be better than this but that doesn’t stop things from being hard now. If you’re mourning right now just know I am right there beside you, working on laying my old life to rest so my new life can have a chance to begin. It can be uncomfortable to admit it but some parts of this life hold great sadness. We can’t avoid it and we can’t change it. We can only be present in it and truly let ourselves experience the pain, hold ourselves in it, and move through it.

Have you ever felt so tired or weary that you started to cry, and then found yourself feeling better afterwards? It’s not natural for us to try and exist outside of the natural cycles of emotion, burying ourselves in distractions so we never have to experience that fallout. It’s scary to open ourselves up to negative feelings, but it’s the only way we can then access joy and hope in a true, meaningful way as well.

I cried yesterday. I’ll probably cry tomorrow. I don’t know how many times I’ll cry before we are all able to see each other again, but I know that crying now, being present with myself at this time of deep loss, means that someday I’ll be able to experience happiness and peace just as deep and true. I’m asking you to hold onto the things that are still good right now, to talk to your loved ones and create things that matter to you and care for yourself and daydream for the future, but give yourself space for the sadness as well because it is just as important.

We are all in this together, and we will get through this together.

We all know that colors can impact our moods. We have colors we’re fond of, ones we like to dress in, ones we like to surround ourselves with, ones that bring fond memories back to us. Color, much like music, is capable of resonating much deeper with us than words can explain.

It comes as no surprise that colors often create patterns around us, encouraging different emotions, energies and reactions. Colors hold special significance to us based on the things we associate with them: blues are calming like the sky or the sea, greens transport us back to the peaceful growth of nature, orange invokes the crackling power of a fire. Hinduism says that each of our seven chakras are grounded in a different color, each associated with different energy and intentions. Using this wisdom we can mindfully employ colors to help us craft the energy of our spaces with care. We can create more balance, happiness, and peace in our lives by thinking about the colors that exist in our physical spaces.

Purple

Associated with the crown chakra located at the top of the head, purple signifies deep alignment with the universe, creativity, and enlightenment. Think about the deep purples of a mountain range or a late starry night. Purple is a color that seeks to connect us with the universe at a higher level. If you’re feeling trapped in small details and petty gripes or want to feel more connected with a vision for your life, consider incorporating more purple in your space.

Dark Blue

Dark blue is the color of the brow chakra and has a connection to intuition and memory. Like a deep, rolling ocean or a still, placid lake, dark blue brings us peace and stillness. It creates depth and stability; if you’re feeling fragile or flighty, or you’re having difficulty sleeping, bring dark blues into the places where you seek rest.

Light Blue

The color of the throat chakra, light blue is associated with communication, wisdom, loyalty and trust. Light blue has many special qualities to it- did you know it’s most people’s favorite color? Think of the quiet happiness that comes from looking up at a clear blue sky on a sunny day. Bringing this color into your spaces promotes a deep sense of calm. Light blue has so many superpowers. People are more likely to trust someone dressed in blue, and science has also found that bright blues can actually help to reset circadian rhythms, our internal clocks, if they fall out of alignment. Consider taking advantage of this magical color for increased calm and a deeper trust between you and the universe.

Pink

You probably already know that pink has a deep connection with love and tenderness: when we think about pink we think about hearts, roses, and femininity. Anyone who works with crystals will tell you that rose quartz, a soft light pink stone, is helpful for creating love for others and yourself. This soft hue is connected to the heart chakra and studies have shown that pink can help to calm frazzled nerves and relieve negative thoughts. It’s the color for love, nurturing and kindness. If you’re feeling a lack of grace or empathy for yourself or others, try to bring some more pinks into your spaces and feel the love.

Green

Green is also associated with the heart chakra and has many benefits. Like the greens that grow in nature all around us, green symbolizes new beginnings and fresh life. Studies show that green can make you more creative and give you energy. Because of this, experts often recommend using green in places you want to see productivity like your office or workout area. Green spaces can help boost mental health and happiness as well, strengthening your ability to access positivity. This color is great for places where you need to feel energized and productive; just make sure to keep it away from places you use for rest and quiet to avoid filling them with too much restlessness.

Yellow

Yellow is the color of the solar plexus chakra in our lower abdomen. Like the sun, the color yellow encourages confidence and clarity and can lift your spirits when you’re feeling stagnant or unhappy. If you need a change of pace or are looking for ways to access more joy in your everyday life, consider placing more yellow around your home and feel your mood lift.

Orange

The color of the sacral chakra located in the lower abdomen, orange is associated with creativity and motion. The color orange can help to provide a burst of energy or excitement when we experience a block or obstacle, clearing out those things that have been holding us back or keeping us captive. Much like a crackling fire orange can be energizing, invoking passion and movement when needed. Bring it into spaces when you’re craving a change or need an extra boost to conquer a task but be sure to remove it from more restful areas.

Red

Red is connected to the root chakra, the lowermost chakra located at the base of the spine.

Science has much to say about this color. Our brains often translate it as dangerous; this triggers our fight-or-flight responses, filling us with energy, strength, confidence and power. It also connects us more to our physical surroundings, serving to ground us and increase our connection to reality. The color red can provide us with so much strength and power when we need to call on it, but the increased energy level can also decrease decision-making skills. Use it in places and times when you need to trust yourself or stand your ground but stay away when a matter needs careful consideration.

So many of us are experiencing feelings of stagnation while we spend more time occupying the same spaces every day. If you’ve felt cooped up or in desperate need of a change, try bringing new colors into your area and see if they bring new energy and life with them. Working with color can be an easy way to refresh the old and each one is capable of helping us connect to a deeper part of ourselves.

First of all, if you are practicing social distancing right now, I want to thank you. This is the simplest step you can take to protect others during the outbreak of COVID-19, and your actions right now may very well save the lives of our elders or people who, like me, are made more vulnerable to the virus because of autoimmune conditions. However, knowing you’re doing the right thing doesn’t always make it easy.

Humans are social creatures. We crave interactions, stimulation, fresh air, and balance. Add a sudden change in all of our routines to the stresses of avoiding sickness and trying to stay stocked on the necessities, and it can paint a dark picture. We are in survival mode now, literally. In times of great stress, the idea of self-care can seem frivolous or low priority. There are just too many things to take care of, we think, and wellness isn’t one of them. I would argue that it’s times like these that self-care is the most essential. As we face daily stressors, constraints, and isolation, it’s more important than ever that we treat ourselves with compassion, empathy, and care.

A lot of people, myself included, tend to forget our physical bodies when we’re busy dealing with a stressful day-to-day. Never forget that your body is as much a part of you as your mind, and it only takes a few moments a day of intentionality to keep it healthy and happy. As many of us are using makeshift workspaces while we work from home, we may find ourselves hunching over a bit more during the day. In my latest Instagram live I did a few stretches that are perfect for opening up the shoulders and releasing some of the tension buildup— I’d encourage you to try it out if you missed it.

As we spend more time in our own homes, don’t forget that for many a walk around the neighborhood is still a fantastic resource. Get out of the house, enjoy some fresh air, and burn off some of the stressful energy your body’s been accumulating. This is doubly helpful if you’re experiencing symptoms of anxiety or panic. If you can’t get outside, even walking in place or doing a few jumping jacks can allow your body to burn off the stress-produced cortisol in your system, which will stop your body’s fight-or-flight responses and allow you a bit more peace.

Because we’re spending so much more time in our living spaces now, try making them as soothing to inhabit as possible. It can seem like a waste of time in the grand scheme of things, but keeping your space clean can give you such an advantage in feeling comfortable at home. Try burning candles or incense, letting as much light in as possible, or having music on: all of these are ways to create an environment of comfort and peace.

It can be easy to hear about others’ productivity in this time and feel shame about our needs or lack of output, but I would encourage each of us to see this as a time to seriously consider our own needs. Do you need to move until you sweat? Do you need to eat something sweet, take a nap, read something new or watch your favorite movie? In this time of great stress, one of the things to hold tightest to is a great respect, love, and tenderness for ourselves and others.

If you found any of these pointers useful, please consider sharing with a friend, and let me know how you’re practicing self care by leaving a comment for me on the Carrie Ann Conversations Instagram.

As a final note, this is a stressful time for everyone, and with so many unknowns it can be hard to feel anything close to peace. The definition of despair is the inability to believe anything will get better, and a lot of us are in danger of being overwhelmed by that despair in this uncertain moment. As it’s impossible to know what the future holds, I want to challenge each of us to focus on each day on its own, and prioritize using each of our waking hours to take care of ourselves and each other.

Living in a crisis as extended and intense as the COVID-19 outbreak isn’t something the average person is prepared for. As anxiety and isolation have weighed on us for weeks, it only makes sense that we’d be exhausted. We know it won’t be like this forever, but it can be hard to remind ourselves of that while we’re in the midst of this pandemic. We’re becoming aware of our own vulnerabilities more than ever. We’re all feeling overwhelmed by the challenges that are mounting against us, whether they’re finances, health, loneliness, or grief. This is why it’s so crucial for us to make sure we give ourselves a break. Without intentionality it can be so easy to spend every waking moment worrying about our lives and ingesting news. While recognizing those feelings and staying informed is important, we have to take steps to give ourselves moments of peace and joy as well.

With the knowledge that this crisis is ongoing, we have to also recognize we’ll burn out if we spend all our time worrying. We might not have the full access to our normal relaxation repertoire but there are still ways we can take time in quarantine to give ourselves comfort and love. Mini escapes can be a great way to get a little relief. A mini escape is anything you can do to distract yourself from your normal stress and worries for a few moments, a little paradise in the midst of hard times. Here are a few I suggest:

– Spend more time with your thoughts. In times of great stress, silence can be frightening. But giving yourself the chance to reflect on the changes we’re all going through and recenter yourself can be a great way to add more peace and balance to your life. Try carving out some time in your schedule to journal or meditate. Meditation can seem intimidating at first but there are so many apps that can help make the practice more approachable and personalized. Insight Timer, Calm, Headspace and Aura are all great apps and a good place to start if you’re looking to work more mindfulness into your routine. If you’d rather meditate while connecting with a guide, Jay Sheddy releases live meditations every day that are only 20 minutes long. Meditation is a vital part of my daily routine and I try to work it into my Carrie Ann Conversations livestreams when I can; you’re always welcome to join me there to take a few moments for yourself.

– Move around. Take yourself on a walk around the neighborhood (maintaining distance!) to get some fresh air and sunshine. If you can’t get out, look up a quick workout you can do from home and listen to some music that gets your blood pumping. If you’re not a workout person, it can be enough just to put on your favorite playlist and have your own dance party. It might sound silly but I guarantee it’ll make you feel better.

– Change your environment. Whether it’s rearranging the decor on your shelves, moving furniture around, bringing flowers in from your yard or even clearing out clutter, refreshing your living space can do wonders for your peace of mind. Changing our surroundings can give us an easy way to feel productive, accomplished, and revitalized.

– Spend some time with your favorites. Pull out your favorite book for an afternoon, or put on your favorite movie. I’ve recently broken into my DVD collection and rediscovered two of my favorites: Moulin Rouge and Watership Down. It’s amazing how much surrounding myself with familiar media, culture I have connections with and memories of, can help me connect to a comfort outside of this moment.

– Give yourself a spa day. Paint your nails, do a face mask, draw a bath for yourself. Use whatever special skin products you’ve been saving, or even just take a long shower with a candle and some music. Give yourself whatever you need to feel pampered and relaxed.

– Treat yourself. Dig out an old recipe for special occasions or just make a simple tray of your favorite cookies. Invite household members to help, and maybe even experiment a bit. Try making your favorite meal if you have the ingredients, or looking up what new thing you can make with the ingredients you have on hand. Cooking is so many gifts at once: a relationship builder, an act of creation, and a way to nourish our bodies, all in one.

– Learn something new. Find an online class that’s being offered for free, start learning a language, or just spend a little time online researching something you’ve always been curious about. You don’t have to expect yourself to earn a master’s degree in this quarantine, but picking up an interest and discovering something new is a great way to reconnect with our passion and intellectual side in a time that can make us feel stagnant.

– Talk to someone you love. If you’re living with family or loved ones, try putting effort into a special meal you all love. Set aside whatever time you’re able, even if it means having pancakes for dinner. Get all your friends together on a Skype call for a wine night, to do games or puzzles together, or have everyone come prepared with crazy questions to ask each other. It’s such a good reminder that, while it may feel like it right now, we are not as alone as it seems.

– Don’t forget to laugh. Humor can be one of the best escapes from hardship. If there’s a funny show, a comedy that always makes you laugh or a Netflix special you treasure, give yourself permission to spend a little time laughing today.

What do you do to give yourself little escapes from our current challenges? Let me know here or on the Carrie Ann Conversations Instagram what mini escapes you love to take yourself on while we all get through this together.

It’s interesting to me how much of our modern culture serves to control and separate us from nature. We spend so much time inside buildings we’ve constructed, walking on pavement we’ve poured and driving ourselves from place to place with our windows up. We’ve made it so that we aren’t really exposed to nature in our day-to-day lives; many aspects of nature, like the weather, pollen, insects and pests can be seen as inconveniences when they threaten to encroach on or disrupt the life patterns we’ve adopted. I think this is why it’s become so easy for us to forget that we’re a part of nature.

Isn’t it amazing to consider how long the earth was here before us, how long it has been going through cycles of rebirth, making mountains and canyons and producing rivers and forests, seeing families of plants and animals grow and migrate and shift? It’s incredible to me to think about the land my house stands on, how it existed for millions of years before anything was built here and how it will continue on long after my house is gone. There’s something about nature, never the same but always constant, timeless yet cyclical. It brings me great peace to think about what nature can show us about harmony, coexistence and natural arcs. Wildfires clear dead brush to make way for the new. Predators keep the ecosystem from producing more life than it can sustain. There is room in nature for death, risk and loss but it always leads once more into new life and fresh change.

As much as we can forget it from time to time, there’s something in nature that will always call to us. There’s a reason nothing is quite so beautiful to us as a forest full of trees, or a peaceful seaside teeming with life, or a landscape quieted by snow. It feels like coming home, in a way. Our first home. Every time I take a step off of the beaten path, stand in the grass in my bare feet, listen to the sounds of birds and insects buzzing around me or smell the gorgeous bouquet of the indigenous plants and trees, I can’t help but feel like a part of something bigger. A part of this greater ecosystem, connected to everything else in essence and action. A friend once told me that the earth is a giant magnet and that, because there is iron moving through our blood, so are we. How good does it feel to dig your toes into the dirt and align with the heartbeat that sustains all of us? So much about modern life is about conquering and resisting nature, limiting its ability to inconvenience us and keeping it in its place. What if we spent more time learning what it had to teach us about ourselves?

Shinto, the indigenous Japanese belief system, places an emphasis on revering parts of nature as sacred entities with spiritual power all their own. Shinto teaches that nature isn’t under our human control and therefore it deserves our respect and reverence. It pays homage to the fact that humans need nature to survive. Shinto shrines are set up as simple tributes to nature with minimal architecture, meant to bring attention to the beauty that’s already present. What if we took more time to recognize the ecosystem we’ve been born into, to honor the sacred that’s all around us? What if we were more able to see the life all around us for what it is, life, with its own value and sanctity and significance?

If you think about the earth’s long history, we’ve been part of the bigger picture far longer than we’ve tried to set ourselves apart from it. Nature shows us the necessity of balance and cooperation. It tells us that there are seasons for growth and seasons for rest. Nature gives us permission to do nothing more than exist, live and thrive. The next time you’re taking a walk outside or working on your garden, take a moment to reflect on the life that’s flowing all around you, connecting you to every living thing, supporting you as you move through the world. There’s a lot of peace and security there, I think.

I’ve written and spoken before about my invisible illnesses, about the importance of self-care, finding a community, and settling into a new normal. Recently I’ve had a lot of people writing in to ask me what my routine looks like, and what I do to soften the impact of my autoimmune conditions on my happiness and health. Figuring out how to work with autoimmune conditions can be an uphill battle; they can manifest in so many different ways, they’re invisible illnesses, and the average person isn’t always aware of the toll they can take. It’s also important to know that autoimmune illnesses usually come in pairs or even sets of pairs. I have Sjögren’s Syndrome, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and fibromyalgia.

There are the pieces of advice I give everyone who’s starting down the path of managing autoimmune conditions: get lots of rest, manage your stress levels, make sure you’re eating well and exercising. These are all good places to start, but I wanted to dig a bit deeper into what practices have worked for me. Community, forging connections between people with similar conditions, can truly be such a lifesaver when it comes to dealing with AI and I want to be a part of that transparency and support for my fellow fighters.

I said exercise is important, and it is: when I’m not moving I have no energy, no flow, I feel stagnant. Movement is vital to my wellness, but it was also something that took me years to figure out. Often when someone with autoimmune conditions pushes themselves too hard it results in flare-ups, an intensifying of symptoms, and total exhaustion for days or weeks afterward. There was an era where I was afraid to do anything for fear of putting myself out of commission entirely, and so many other times when I would work too hard on my good days, resulting in bad days, in an endless cycle. When you’re planning exercise into your routine, it’s so important to first recognize that you do have an illness. We have a right to thrive, but in order to do that, we have to accept a new normal for ourselves, with goals that might be a little (or a lot) more relaxed than what we used to have. It can be hard to identify as a sick person when many of us wish we could just get better and move on, but acceptance is the only way we can take steps forward into our new functioning lives.

I found a trainer, Michelle Lovit, who absolutely supports me and works to keep me healthy without risking damage or autoimmune flareups. I’ve worked with her for about two years; we started with simple exercises to open up the chest and shoulders. We incorporated more exercises little by little, moving on to include abs and lunges, and slowly my body got stronger and I got more into a rhythm. It’s all about finding a new threshold that allows me to be strong without pushing myself into a danger zone. Now I do two heavier workouts a week, one day of yoga, and every morning in the shower I do basic exercises: 25 lunges on the left side, 25 lunges on the right side, and 25 tricep pushups.

The shower is a vital part of my routine because the steam moistens my lungs. I speak for a living and Sjögren’s can dry out my mouth and sinuses, so providing myself with enough moisture is huge. In the shower, I also use a neti pot with saline water to flush out my sinuses, and I sing a little to warm up my vocal cords.

Sjögren’s can also cause extremely painful dry eyes so my days begin and end with saline eyedrops. I only buy eyedrops with no preservatives because those can increase dryness. I have two humidifiers in my bedroom, one in my kitchen and one in my living room. I have air purifiers all over my house to keep the air clean and manage the dander from my 6 beautiful rescue animals— this is one way I make my home and my environment more gentle on my autoimmune conditions. The only lotion I’ve ever found that makes me feel genuinely moisturized is Pure Fiji. I can’t recommend it enough and it leaves me smelling like coconuts, my favorite scent in the world. I use their body butter every day, but on special occasions when I want to look extra silky or lock in moisture I’ll mix in one part Pure Fiji coconut oil to three parts body butter. It’s a trick I learned when I was choreographing strippers a long time ago.

Eating healthy is a big part of my wellness. Every morning I make myself a vegetable based protein shake with probiotics and enough nutrients for the day:

Carrie Ann’s Stay Healthy Shake Recipe

– Garden of Life Raw Organic Fit Vanilla protein powder (order on Amazon)

– Green Vibrance probiotic (order on Amazon)

– Supergreen Complex (order on Amazon)

– Fruit of your choice (I use peaches)

– Water

– Ice

The probiotic has been a lifesaver; ever since I started adding it to my morning shake I’ve noticed far fewer flare ups. Every morning I also take lypo-spheric Vitamin C, 10000 mg of Vitamin D and fish oil.

A few other ingredients have worked their way into my diet to help me minimize health issues and maximize my body’s potential. For lunch I usually have a salad with turmeric, which is fantastic for reducing the inflammation autoimmune disorders can cause. Ever since I’ve started working The Talk and found myself around more people, I’ve become prone to catching small colds and coughs. The second I feel a tickle in my throat or any sickness coming on, I take some oregano oil to combat it. Every night I make sure to have a cup of tea.

Mental wellness can sometimes go overlooked when you’re being faced with the chronic physical pain associated with autoimmune disorders, but self care and recovery has to include mental health. Every night before bed I set time aside to meditate and pray. I always include a thanks: “Thank you for all that is, all that was, and all that will be.” I often thank God for each of my animals as well. For meditations I use Insight Timer or listen to Blinkist, an app that condenses bestsellers.

I’ve always felt drawn to self-help books. I don’t let problems, tensions or worries sit too long without addressing them. I’m always looking for solutions, because stress always seems to compile when we don’t have an answer. I look for signs everywhere; if I’m faced with a crossroads or an obstacle I don’t know how to address, I’ll start pulling angel cards or open a book I love to a random page. I almost always find an answer— it’s all about giving my subconscious the opportunity to express itself to me. You can never be wrong when you’re interpreting your subconscious. It leaves messages for you everywhere; you just have to take the time to listen.

These are practices I’ve cultivated over years of living with my own autoimmune conditions. If you’re on an AI journey of your own, or even just trying to get healthier in general, try any of these that works for you but never be afraid to try something different if it feels right. Everyone’s relationship with illness is different and none of our paths will be identical. If there’s a part of your practice you love and depend on, I’d love to hear about it. When facing invisible illnesses, nothing is more important than support and community. I’m honored to be a part of that community for you.