Intermission

A mini-blog/reflective journal from a self-confessed air-head.

Intermission

Possible forthcoming topics (though I make no promises)

K	Kemeticism
L	Lockdown / "leaving" lockdown  or Love in the Time of Coronavirus
M	Metta, or Mobility - not sure yet
N	Tbc
O	Optimism?  or Opportunity? (or a combination of both?)
P	Posterity

I'm currently trying to generate more publicity for this GoFundMe campaign; please visit the site, read about & share it (and consider donating) - thank you, very much.

Photo credits: Markus Spiske on Unsplash (notebook) and Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash (pencil)

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European Union laws require that EU visitors be given information about cookies used and data collected on this blog.  Google/Blogger have added a notice on this blog to explain Google's use of certain Blogger and Google cookies, including use of Google Analytics and AdSense cookies, and other data collected by Google.  If this notice does not display and you are in the EU, please will you notify me in the comments section.  Many thanks.

Fork theory

A mini-blog/reflective journal, from a self-confessed air-head.

Fork theory

Photo: Matt Popovich

(I was torn for this blog post with whether to write about Forest Bathing, but I didn't have enough material for it - I may post about it in the future if I can think of an angle, given that I don't live somewhere where any forests are accessible to me.  If you're a tree fan, though, then scroll to the end as I was reading about how even looking at just pictures of trees can be beneficial for mental health, so I threw in a few bonus photos despite being off-topic.🌲)

So anyway, hopefully most of those reading this blog will be familiar with spoon theory - if not, you can read

Photo: Joanna Kosinska

it here:

https://butyoudontlooksick.com/articles/written-by-christine/the-spoon-theory/

It's a really useful shorthand for talking about chronic health management issues.

A friend recently(ish) introduced me to fork theory.

Photo: Alex G

You can find fork theory here:

http://jenrose.com/fork-theory/

The basic idea, inspired by the expression "Stick a fork in me, I'm done", is that forks are stressors (small or large) and everyone has a limit to how many stressors they can handle at a time (a fork limit). 

Again, it's a useful shorthand for talking about the impact of circumstances and events (cumulatively) on one's ability to cope.

I also feel like it could be good for actually helping one to cope with those stressors.  A way of thinking about those stressors in a way which helps you realise that they can (at least some of them, some of the time) can be removed.  The example in the linked website is needing to pee; when things are getting on top of you and you have to pee, going to the bathroom can at least remove that one small fork relatively easily (usually).  Doing something practical can reduce one's overall stress load.  Sort of the opposite of the snowball effect.

Like for instance when one is starting a college assignment, or feeling overloaded at work.

Photo: Hugo Rocha

Breaking the task down into small chunks helps one to start tackling those chunks one by one, and the feeling of progress can help to reduce the feeling of general overwhelm, or not knowing where to begin, and enables one to start making real headway (ideally).

It's not going to fix everything with one stroke, but it can effectively help in a lot of day-to-day instances - even if it's just a little bit.

If you read my 'D' post on dialectical behaviour therapy, fork theory may link in here, too, as it may be possible to build up an 'immunity to forks', through the process of distress tolerance (working in partnership with one's therapist - there'd be potential risks associated with undertaking one's own exposure therapy without professional guidance, for instance).

But one needn't go that far even; just simply keeping fork theory in the back of one's mind day-to-day doesn't have to take up a lot of mental room, but could be really useful, even if only as a form of 'shorthand'.

Of course, my husband says that I'm a permanent fork, in his a$$; so fork theory may be a useful shorthand when it comes to relationships too!?

Photo: Mitra Mohammadi

But seriously, I hope fork theory is of some help to some readers - let me know in the comments, and let me know if you're aware of any other helpful theories like this.

Good health!

Bonus tree photos:

Johann Siemens

Sergei Akulich

Photo: Luca Bravo

Photo: Trevor Pye

Photo credits: all photos from Unsplash

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Dialectical Behaviour Therapy

A mini-blog/reflective journal from a self-confessed air head (most of the time)

Dialectical behaviour therapy, and why I think it could be helpful for me.

Photo: Shirish Suwal

The short answer is that I didn't get along with cognitive behaviour therapy.

There, that's it, blog written, time for feet up in front of the TV!  (Just kidding, obviously.)

Now first off, despite having an interest in psychology I've never formally studied it - I'm not a doctor, I'm not a medical professional, I am not attempting to diagnose anyone (not even me -- self-diagnosis not a good idea) and all the usual other disclaimers.  I also do not have a diagnosis of emotional dysregulation disorder - instead I suffer with generalised anxiety (with a degree of depression, secondary to a chronic physical health condition, thrown in).  I do relate to some of the symptoms of the disorder, however.

I read or otherwise learned about DBT somewhere which I now can't recall, as it was a while ago. And immediately that word dialectical attracted me for some reason best known to my subconscious.  

Image: Nick Coleman

Actually it's possible I misread it as diabolical and thought it was amusing! (Just kidding. Kinda.)

I'd attended a couple of sessions of CBT when I was younger (not long out of university).  And I can recall: Just. Not. Getting it.

On a logical level I could understand well enough what was being asked of me in conversations such as the following:

Me: I worry about using public transport, I find it very daunting and overwhelming

Therapist: What worries you about using public transport to make it daunting & overwhelming for you?

Me: I worry about all the things which could go wrong; for example what if I stumble while boarding in front of all the other passengers or I drop my wallet and all my cash spills out everywhere

Therapist: And what do you think would be the consequences if that situation were to occur?

Me THINKS: I'd be mortified and want to run home to hide under the duvet or something! But I know that's not the response they're looking for

[In fact, the above exchange was rather more protracted in reality but wouldn't make for exciting reading]

Me, ultimately, SAYS: ... [nothing]

Me, subsequently: attended a maximum of about two sessions before the prospect of continuing this therapy became a massive source of anxiety in and of itself, and I became a no show.

It's difficult to put into words, because it's kind of that when you're an anxiety sufferer you just feel anxious.  You feel anxious about things which other people take in their stride when you have generalised anxiety.  Someone can explain to you or painstakingly lead you yourself to admit aloud that, even if you were to stumble (or otherwise clutz everywhere), it's not going to physically be the cause of your death.  They can explain and expound that concept until they're blue in the face. 

Photo: Anastasiya Romanova

I'm sure most of us sufferers do actually realise that's the case on a logical level.  But knowing that on the logical level doesn't make the anxiety being experienced by the lizard brain miraculously go away.  (At least, it didn't for me.)


Don't get me wrong, I do realise that the above is very much an oversimplification and that therapy is a process; one isn't going to be 'cured' in just two sessions.  But I recall feeling such embarrassment in those therapy sessions, as though my perceptions of my daily stressors were being looked down upon or shamed.  And as a relative youngster embarrassment was most certainly not the kind of emotion which was going to encourage me to embrace or engage with any process.

I tried to seek a simple unstructured talking therapy or humanistic counselling, but back then in my area there appeared to be no such thing available (ironically, later on when I was a bit more mature and felt I could actually engage with CBT finally, all that was on offer in my area by then was the simple humanistic talking therapy!)

Photo: MIO ITO

So, having had such a negative reaction to CBT (and being just a really contrary person on a base level -- my mother would tell you, I should've been named Mary!) perhaps my becoming interested in a thing named dialectical behaviour therapy was a natural outcome.

I think DBT appealed to me when I heard about it because, a bit like Emotional Freedom Technique, you're "allowed" to focus on the negative thing you're experiencing as a part of the process.  With EFT, the first two steps of the process are to identify and focus on the issue which one's experiencing.  My brain can't help but ruminate on the issue, so it's nice when it's "allowed" (at least at the outset).

Photo: Steve Johnson

With DBT, the basic idea (in a very brief nutshell) is that two things can be true at once -- so at the same time there's anxiety and things suck, but with DBT techniques one can cope better with the anxiety and the sucking.

Although I'm being a bit flippant here for levity, I did ponder the merits of DBT for a while and concluded that I wished it were available where I live (though it wasn't a strong enough wish to seek out a private practitioner, since making finances stretch that far would have been very difficult, and (ha!) stress inducing).

I also read that the developer of DBT, Dr. Linehan, approaches her work from an approach based in spirituality, and there are aspects of Zen which have therefore come through into the DBT approach. So this was another reason for it to appeal to me.

Photo: Mitchell Luo

On the other hand, from what I've read latterly a large part of DBT involves regular group sessions.  Whilst I'm not at all opposed to group therapy, I've run up against this particular obstacle -of attendance being required- before and it's actually pretty prohibitive for me, in my circumstances.

Photo by Cris Saur

For example, I was offered a place at the chronic fatigue clinic (which was pretty exceptional, since you're only offered a place if you have a diagnosis of CFS and I don't actually have such a diagnosis). And I had to turn down the place since it involved weekly group sessions on weekday mornings.  I asked if there were places available on a weekend or evening session so I could fit my attendance around work (since I do somehow manage to work full time despite the fatigue).  But I was advised that their patients don't have the energy to attend sessions in evenings or on weekends.  And I get that...

Photos: kates.sade / Jesus
Hilario H. / Savannah Wakefield

...but for me, this would therefore have meant: taking time off work, travelling to and participating in the group session and then heading from there to work for the rest of the day.  Plus making up the time taken off work, at a later date (or else using my annual leave allocation to attend the clinic sessions instead of for R&R).  So, it was prohibitive for me.


And so I know that I'd find the group sessions involved with DBT prohibitive too, even if it were available where I live (which it isn't, so far as I can ascertain -- at least not on the NHS, anyway).  I'm aware there are various other types of therapy in existence, but I'm also aware that there's only limited NHS provision in my area and so far as I know it's CBT or nothing.

So for now it'll be neither CBT nor DBT (nor any other type of T); I'll be endeavouring to explore the world of emotional intelligence and healing independently (with the help of some of those apps I blogged about in my #4 post).  And I might just look into TAT (Tapas Acupressure Technique) before too long, too.  There may then be a blog post for that later in the alphabet if so, so watch this space.

Photo: Lesly Juarez

Resources


Websites

• https://behavioraltech.org/about-us/founded-by-marsha/ - developer of DBT

• NHS.uk

• Mental Health Foundation

• Mind

• Samaritans

Journal article(s)/specific webpages

• https://www.heretohelp.bc.ca/q-and-a/whats-the-difference-between-cbt-and-dbt

• The Course and Evolution of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (American Journal of Psychotherapy)

• Mind DBT section

• Psychology Today item

Photo credits: all photos from Unsplash


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Intermission

A mini-blog/reflective journal from a self-confessed air-head.

Intermission

Possible forthcoming topics (though I make no promises)

F	Fork theory
G	Gizmos and Gadgetry
H	Hauntings
I	Insomnia?
J	tbc (keep an eye on the comments as I'll post there when inspiration strikes)

Photo credits: Markus Spiske on Unsplash (notebook) and Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash (pencil)

Cookies/data
European Union laws require that EU visitors be given information about cookies used and data collected on this blog.  Google/Blogger have added a notice on this blog to explain Google's use of certain Blogger and Google cookies, including use of Google Analytics and AdSense cookies, and other data collected by Google.  If this notice does not display and you are in the EU, please will you notify me in the comments section.  Many thanks.

Equinoxes, Solstices, Cross-Quarter Days and Esbats

A mini-blog/reflective journal, from a self-confessed air-head.

Equinoxes and Solstices

Photo: Aaron Burden

This is not what I said I was going to write about for this blog post, but my chronic health condition and consequent energy management issues aren't going anywhere soon, so there'll be plenty of time for me to post about that in the future.

This is also out of my sequence as I start drafting this post, because as I write it's the morning of Saturday 20 June and I'm planning my summer solstice activities for the day.  So, as inspiration (Awen?) appears to have struck I've decided to go with it. /|\

Photo: Melissa Van Gogh

Our cat has helpfully made sure that I'm up and awake in good time to make the most of the day (poor boy, he's on a diet so he reckoned he was starving hungry and wasting away, therefore the humans must be up and about in order to serve His Highness).  So providing he doesn't demand too much play or cuddle time, I should get lots done today (I know, first world problems right?)

I've always felt an affinity with the equinoxes and solstices, from when I was quite small.  It's a feeling I can't easily put into words; it's part of what leads me to pursuing my spiritual path*.  It's just a feeling of being connected with these days.

I'd love to make it to Stonehenge one summer solstice just for the experience.

Photo: Ganapathy Kumar

(I've got to be honest, I've probably only included esbats in the title of this blog post for a sense of symmetry and the tiny bit of alliteration it provides - I'm not a Wiccan or a witch, and I don't feel the same level of affinity with the esbats that I do with the Wheel of the Year holidays, though I do think the full moon is a beautiful and therefore a magical thing.  Sorry for the false advertising - I will, however, make a note to myself to blog about esbats at some point in the future.)

Photo: Bethany Cirlincione

So, what am I doing to mark the summer solstice in 2020?

• Blog a bit (check ✅)
• Finish making and hang my summer decoration (a string of daisies made from 2mm craft foam)
• Pot up some of the spider plant 'babies' which have been appearing since the last time I did it - also try and rescue an aloe vera plant (I think I overwatered it)
• Some celebratory food and drink
• Light a candle, come the evening
• Finish and publish my Apps blog post!
• Do some of my work (my day job), even though it's a Saturday (because it's work which is of benefit to the local community); I also aim to do a bit of 'e-volunteering' on the Zooniverse site (again, because it's work which is of benefit to wider society)
• Provide a meal for and spend some time petting the semi-stray cat who lives on a doorstep of one of the houses in my street
• If there's time, do a bit of crafting on my 'druid staff', and possibly look at my distance learning course I'm (very gradually!) studying
• Start looking ahead to the December solstice

That last one is not because I'm wishing the time away (that's the last thing I'd wanna to do!) But because the forum I'm a member of has an annual online celebration of the December solstice called Up All Night, and in previous years we've talked about doing more promotion of this event - so this year I've taken it upon myself to undertake some of this promotion. And I liked the sense of symmetry which I felt beginning that promotion upon the June solstice would provide (with the permission of the board host).

That's it for this first half of this post - I shall return to update (plus write a bit about cross-quarter days) and publish this after the solstice weekend has passed.  🠟

The second half:

It's the morning of Sunday 21 June as I write, and to my very great surprise today I woke at almost the exact moment of the sunrise here!  I watched a bit of the live stream of the moments following sunrise from Stonehenge on the English Heritage YouTube channel (though due to being overcast not much of the actual sun was visible).

I didn't get up and going for several hours, as I'd been aiming to get some more sleep.  At 11:30am I was still dozing on the sofa when my husband woke me by phoning me from our bedroom because the cat had woken him up (evidently it was his turn to serve today - I'm glad our cat has this equitable view of our servitude! 😻)

So it seems my To Do list created yesterday was a tad bit ambitious as I've not yet potted up any of

those spider plant 'babies' or worked on my 'druid' staff (and being the weekend I've also all the regular household chores to do, only a very few of which I did yesterday).               Photo: Abel Y Costa on Unsplash

Photo by Michael Pujal

I'm okay with both the above things because I haven't actually got anywhere for more plants to go (I need to take some to the office, but there's no-one working there on a regular basis during lockdown who can be relied upon to tend them); and there's always autumn equinox to work on my staff.

I managed to finish and publish my Apps blog post yesterday (and it's here if you haven't already seen it).

I'll now round out this post by briefly mentioning cross-quarter days, of which my favourites have always been Beltaine and Samhaim, both from quite a young age also.  Again, these days just resonate with me for reasons I can't seem to elaborate on.

So, along with autumn equinox I'll be looking forward to the latter (Samhaim) before very long 

Photo: Estée Janssens

- in the scheme of things- and doing more crafting of additions to the plentiful decorations which I like to put up at the start of October.
(Apologies again for lack of any real mention of esbats in this post - I'll make a note to myself to come back to that topic some time in the future.)

Credit: EH Bowen

And finally, coming back to publicising that Up All Night online celebration of the December solstice which I'll be looking forward to come the winter months, this here link will take you to the page I've created for this purpose.  I hope this year we'll have some new members getting to know the community there and taking part in the revels.

Evening update:  In view of all of the above, and in spite of not getting every last thing on my To Do list done, I'm overall very pleased with what I've achieved this weekend.

Smiley face emoji!  😄

I hope you've enjoyed reading this post and that you had an enjoyable solstice, too - let me know in the comments if you feel like it 😃

*I think of my path as "Druid-ish"

Photos from Unsplash; 'Up All Night' artwork: EH Bowen on https://ecauldron.com/



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Apps for spirituality and self-care

A mini-blog/reflective journal, from a self-confessed air-head.

Photo Fred Moon

This time: a list of (android) apps I've found useful for spirituality and self care, with mini-reviews.

My top picks:-

1) The Tapping Solution 💚

The Tapping Solution LLP

'Guided Tapping Meditations'

I love this app, it's just what I'd been looking for. It's free to download with a range of free meditations available. The full paid version is rather pricey, but I purchased it as there was a special half price offer on at the time (I'm pretty unlikely to renew it next year, however, due to the costly price tag so after that it'll be back to the free version).  You do, as you'd imagine, get quite a bit more content as a paid up subscriber but I seem to recall that the free content was pretty good, too. 

The app literally guides you through whichever tapping (Emotional Freedom Technique) meditation you select. It works especially well for me as my mind can wander uncontrollably with attempted solo meditation, and what I believe to be probable undiagnosed dyspraxia makes it difficult for me to learn and recall the sequence of EFT tapping without the app to follow along with.

I find the act of tapping, rather than just mindfulness or meditation, very useful to keep me focused on taking the time out for this self-care activity, and I also find it extremely helpful for those occasions when I'm excessively 'keyed up' and feel I wouldn't be able to sit still for other forms of relaxation or meditation.  

Photo: Brian Kelly

There's a section in the app where you can read about the science behind EFT.

The user interface is fairly simple and very easy to use.  I get the occasional 'crash' of the app, but nothing too frustrating.

I've been recommending this app to everyone who'll listen!

The Tapping Solution website

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

2) Feeling Good: positive mindset 🌱

Positive Rewards

'Lifting mood, creating calm & positive vision'
Audios for stress and depression

I like this app, as it has a cute logo of a blue sky with the sun shining and represents progress with imagery such as tufts of grass and a tree in leaf. And it's free, though there is a paid version you can purchase to access more content.

Also, it's developed in collaboration with doctors & psychologists.

The first meditation is a simple three minute mindfulness which begins and ends with what I imagine to be a single tone from a Tibetan singing bowl, which I like. It helps put me right in the most suitable frame of mind.

I also appreciate that this app is really simple, there's not tonnes of different sections or tabs to scroll or click around, you just open the app and do what you've set out to do.

Photo: Luke Richardson

The mini-review ends here, because I've yet to progress to the next meditation and the rest of the content, but I'm hopeful I'll get on with it just as well, and thoroughly enjoy seeing my tree in full leaf.

About the Feeling Good app

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other apps I've tried (in alphabetical order):-

Calm - Meditate, Sleep, Relax ➰

Calm.com, Inc.

'Join millions discovering the life-changing benefits of meditation with Calm'

This one had been recommended in numerous places so I gave it a try but I've got to be honest I uninstalled it fairly soon.

There's a selection of meditations, music, sleep stories, nature sounds and possibly other stuff.  So, lots.  But much of it is locked to the free user and I wasn't confident enough that it was what I was looking for to buy the paid version.  Roaming around the app trying to find the free content was tedious and to be honest I think there was actually too much stuff in this app for me generally; I think I'm someone who prefers a fairly simple user interface and fairly focused app.  If I want nature sounds I'll go to Mynoise.net.  I don't need an app that does all these different things.

But if you do like a packed, multi function app or having lots of things all in one place then you may enjoy Calm.

⭐⭐½

Headspace: Meditation & Sleep 💭
Headspace for Meditation, Mindfulness and Sleep
'Just a few minutes can change your day'

This is another one I'd seen recommended in numerous places so I gave it a try too.

I found it a similar story with this app as with Calm.  The layout was a little better for me than Calm, slightly simpler and with free content nice and obvious at the beginning of sections. Some slightly different features too, such as the ability to add 'buddies'. But overall, it was still a little too full and as mentioned I tend to prefer something simpler, with less to navigate.

It almost certainly comes down to personal preference, and of the apps I've listed I can see a definite trend that the simpler ones work best for me, I can focus in on what I want to get out of it, not spend ages scrolling around.

But with Headspace there is nevertheless some free content so it almost certainly can't hurt most folks to give it a try and uninstall it again if it's not for you.

Ultimately, I uninstalled this app along with Calm, so I guess that's the bottom line of my review - not useful enough for me personally to incentivise keeping downloaded.

⭐⭐⭐

Insight Timer - Free Meditation App ⏲

Insight Network

'The most popular app in the world for Meditation, Sleep, Anxiety and Mindfulness'

A further app I'd seen recommended and gave a try.  I found it similar to both Calm and Headspace, but with a slightly better layout/user interface than either, for me - so a slightly higher rating.

There is a similar bunch of content available as with Headspace and Calm, but for me it was easier to navigate.  Content ranged from a simple timer for your own meditations to the usual sorts of guided meditations and 'coaching' in a range of stress relieving techniques.

I liked that there's a link for you to compare the free and premium content right there in the app when you open it up.  As with the previous two apps, though, I wasn't going to invest in it until I'd tried out the free version.

Ultimately this was another one which I uninstalled after a while, so once again, I guess not useful enough for me personally to keep it on my phone, but I feel I can recommend it - if someone were seeking opinions, I'd suggest that this be one of their first choices to try out, ahead of the above two.

⭐⭐⭐½

Let's Meditate: Sleep & Guided Meditation 🧘

Heal Me Team

'Powerful app for Guided Meditation'

A fairly simple app containing a selection of meditations of differing lengths and with different areas of focus.

It was free to download, and I seem to recall that it was usable offline which was a distinct advantage for me as it meant it was possible to use it during train travel.

If you're looking for something, again, fairly simple and easy to navigate without lots of extraneous features or difficult to fathom settings this may be the meditation app for you.

I personally tired of it after a little while, only because I was looking for something a bit more (but not in terms of complexity of the app - I very much liked the simplicity of this app, but the content just didn't really resonate with me).

⭐⭐⭐

Sleep Cycle: Sleep analysis & Smart alarm clock 💤

Sleep Cycle AB

'Want to sleep better? Let Sleep Cycle coach you.'

I read about this app and decided, as a long time insomnia sufferer, that it sounded well worth a try.

The app claims to use your movement overnight to track how well you're sleeping.  It also has a feature promising to wake you during a period of lighter sleep, enabling you to wake feeling more alert.

I can't really write a full review, unfortunately, as I felt I had to uninstall it after only a few nights.  This was because the instructions say to place your phone on the corner of your bed, plugged into a mains charger overnight.  It was the combination of having the phone physically there, and the fact it gets pretty warm charging overnight (and because we only have a standard sized double bed, my phone would be under my pillow, creating additional heat & fire risk) - I just couldn't relax enough to sleep.  So it obviously didn't help me.

Perhaps if you're lucky enough to have a super king bed with room to position your phone you might benefit from this app.

⭐⭐½

Water Reminder - Remind drink water 💧

recorder and smart apps

'Reminds you to drink water'

A good app if you're in need of this sort of a reminder, and it was free to download.  I had it installed for the first six weeks or so of the coronavirus lockdown of 2020, as the change in routine had disrupted my usual habits and I found that I needed the reminder, at least temporarily.

It asks you for a few details such as gender and weight to calculate how much water it thinks you should be drinking. And it's customisable in terms of your wake up and regular bedtimes, and the size of the glass/cup you're using for your water.

I didn't find the tips contained in the app helpful, but I'd downloaded it purely for the reminder so I just ignored them.

⭐⭐⭐

👎 The wooden spoon goes to: Self Care (ironically!)

Louis Hansel

Someone mentioned the app Self Care to me and I downloaded it, it appeared to be free so I thought worth a try.  But I couldn't even work out how to navigate around or get it to do anything so I almost immediately uninstalled it (of course I may have been missing something which might've become clear if I'd persevered, but frustration is most certainly not what I'm looking for in an app)

Bonus section: "brain training" 🧠 apps I've tried:-

Elevate Elevate Labs 'Sharpen mental skills with 35+ games'.

Lumosity: Brain Training Lumos Labs, Inc 'Lumosity is the world's most popular brain training program'. I've been using Lumosity for years & years, via the website before there were smart phones! www.lumosity.com

NeuroNation NeuroNation 'Brain Trainer + Memory Training & Brain Teasers to improve Focus, Logic, Memory'

The above brain training apps are all in a very similar vein - if you like one, you'll probably like the others.  The above will all have been free downloads (I'm a tightwad!)  I'm afraid I'm very inconsistent with them, so I can't really vouch for whether they actually work!

Photo: Grant

🎵 Finally, I just want to give a special mention (again, as it is mentioned above - the eagle eyed may have spotted it) to the MyNoise website.  It's just an awesome website.  There is an app by the same content creator, but I can't review it as I've not tried it - I've not needed to, the website is everything I need.  I really can't recommend it highly enough.              ☆☆☆☆☆

🗨️ Let me know in the comments if you've a favourite app (or apps) for spirituality &/or self care. 💬

Photo: Jr Korpa

Photo: Sarah Gualtieri

☯

All photos obtained from Unsplash: phone Fred Moon (with edits by PP); woodpecker Brian Kelly; tree Luke Richardson; wooden spoon Louis Hansel; harp Grant; rocks Jr Korpa; tea Sarah Gualtieri; 



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