fucking-relax

[fucking-relax]

[fucking-relax]

take in a deep breath.

now breathe out.

feel the fucking nonsense float away.

take full, deep breaths.

breathe in stength...

breathe out bullshit.

allow your breathing to find its own natural, unhurried pace.

with each breath, feel your body saying:

fuck that

(full Fuck That meditation here)

[fucking-relax]

if you're wearing a binder right now

sit/stand up straight

relax your shoulders

chest out

take a deep breath in all the way down to your belly

exhale slowly

and another deep breath

and out again

[fucking-relax]

3 (+1) Shoulder Moves

shrug your shoulders up towards your ears and slowly lower down. repeat.

tilt your head to the side, bringing your ear towards your shoulder. repeat for the other side.

roll your shoulders up, back, down ↩️ a few times; then roll your shoulders up, forward, down ↪️ a few times.

feeling better? more relaxed? wanna go further? don't stress your body too much trying this but i'm gonna keep at it until it's easier for me:

bring your hands behind your back, fingers pointing down

gently flip your fingers up and turn your hands so palms face each other

press your palms together, draw your elbows slightly back, and open your chest

keep spine straight and hold

relax and pat yourself on the back, fuck yeah!

[fucking-relax]

reminder: your meds

whether that's taking them, refilling them, or whatever you need!

this is your reminder to do what you gotta do

[fucking-relax]

Reminder: Bask in the Warm Glow of Your Achievements like a lizard on a warm rock

if you forgot to do it in the moment, this is your opportunity to Appreciate That You Did It. telling others about it helps make the basking last properly as well.

you did it!! enjoy 🦎

reminder inspired by @skullchicken (see the post for more detail/suggestion)

[fucking-relax]

i don't know if i can have this reminder repeat in a meaningfully effective way on this blog, but

are you partway through doing something and you forgot? perhaps the laundry or some other timed event?

if not, that's fine, sorry to bother

if so, you may wanna go do that

[fucking-relax]

shake out your wrists and flex your fingers; do what you need to make them feel better

and unclench your jaw

[fucking-relax]

eat when you’re hungry,

rest when you’re tired.

you don’t need to “earn it”

[fucking-relax]

Maybe *you* need to unclench *your* jaw 👀

you're not wrong

[fucking-relax]

have you brushed your teeth today?

find what works for you. i ask myself "which feels better":

electric toothbrush or acoustic toothbrush?

flavorful toothpaste, sensitive teeth toothpaste, or something else?

string floss or a single-use floss pick? fancy water floss machine?

staring intently in the mirror, scrolling media, or something else?

brushing your teeth anytime during the day is better than nothing. flossing your teeth when you're able (personally i went from none to once a week to every two days) is better than nothing.

heck, brush your teeth now if you can or set an alarm for when you have access.

[fucking-relax]

eye stretches, yeehaw

your eyes are always looking forward. they're tired. stop that. so, without moving your head:

look up. look down. slowly go back and forth in a straight line at a comfortable pace.

look left. look right. slowly go back and forth in a straight line at a comfortable pace.

cross X's with your eyes. start in one corner of your vision and cross to the other. slowly go back and forth in a straight line at a comfortable pace.

following a finger in these directions may help.

also, blink.

[fucking-relax]

time to fucking relax that neck

start with sitting upright and shoulders pulled back

gently let head fall backwards, holding it there

slowly move your head along your shoulders; hold where you feel a stretch

keep your head as the main weight and drop it over towards the front of your body

slowly move your head along your chest; hold where you feel a stretch

go back and forth a few times all around, perhaps using your hand to gently pull your head further (if you do this, i find it feels best to use the arm in the direction you're going, so head sits in elbow)

gently and slowly return to the upright position

if you're like me, getting excited and whipping your head to point of dizzy, it's alright to not move until you've recovered

[fucking-relax]

point of view: Spiral Time

adapted from Unmasking Autism by Devon Price

"...time [is] flowing and even folding back on itself, an overlapping series of cycles, periods of dormancy intersecting with growth."

Expand the time frame you use to gauge productivity and success -> don't be afraid to cycle back to old projects or let a passion go when it's not giving you what you want/need

Slow down. Stillness helps neurodivergent minds process the huge quantities of data we take in.

[fucking-relax]

3 (+1) Shoulder Moves

shrug your shoulders up towards your ears and slowly lower down. repeat.

tilt your head to the side, bringing your ear towards your shoulder. repeat for the other side.

roll your shoulders up, back, down ↩️ a few times; then roll your shoulders up, forward, down ↪️ a few times.

feeling better? more relaxed? wanna go further? don't stress your body too much trying this but i'm gonna keep at it until it's easier for me:

bring your hands behind your back, fingers pointing down

gently flip your fingers up and turn your hands so palms face each other

press your palms together, draw your elbows slightly back, and open your chest

keep spine straight and hold

relax and pat yourself on the back, fuck yeah!

[fucking-relax]

[fucking-relax]

hey remember when you were feeling anxious, frustrated, panicked, whatever that emotion was, and then

you set a timer for 30 minutes and stretched and worked out aerobically? and while the core struggle isn't gone, it didn't feel so scary anymore?

this is your reminder that it helped. you should probably do it again, and give yourself a sticker about it