Wellness In Progress: May 2025

[itsfi]

Hello, BIC! We have another month of wellness bingo!

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and, for this month, we're adding a few new ways to go about caring for our mental health. Some activities are ones that have been part of previous BIC BWell bingo cards; some are activities from past months, reframed in new ways; and some squares include new ways to care for ourselves.

Whether you elect to check back in with activities you've done this month; whether you'd like to work through the activities in the privacy of your own space; whether you're doing this on your own, with a friend or group; whether you've been on here for a while or this is new to you, welcome! So great to have you here!

For more information on how to go about wellness bingo and for a brief description of the activities described in the squares, check out these posts: 

• How To Play / Participate
• Description of May 2025 Wellness Bingo Activities

Spoiler

@ather @blackkitty2014 @byme4u @caitbird @CorgiMommy @curlychiquita @danielledanielle @Mellmars1185 @peculiarzmakeup @PrettyPaint @Samtian @Shosh85 

Apologies if I inadvertently forgot to tag someone. Please feel free to tag anyone I've missed or anyone you think would be interested. 

[Samtian]

@caitbird Great job! Sorry about the car battery. 

[caitbird]

@Samtian  thank you! The car battery dying was definitely unfortunate, but thankfully my car is back in working order now!

[itsfi]

Your wellness activities sound like they were what you needed @caitbird, minus the car batteries, but even that served as a segue to some self-care. A silver lining, indeed - and it probably helped with staying hydrated, too! Love that you and your neighbors were able to share a meal.

[caitbird]

@itsfi  thank you! Yeah, I could have done without the car battery dying, but these things do happen, so I am trying to look on the bright side.

[itsfi]

First check-in for the month. While I wasn't able to score a bingo, the self-care activities I engaged in this week (which are marked on the wellness bingo card, below, with a pink heart 🩷) were helpful and needed. 

Have a healthy meal

Cross Logic app

from NIH Emotional Wellness Toolkit

• Have a healthy meal - Made a salad with some frozen ham (from Easter dinner last month), beets, cucumber, eggs, and tomatoes 🥗 🍖🥒🥚🍅  Lightly tossed the greens (mix of little gems and spinach) with olive oil and balsamic vinegar before adding the toppings. Washed it down with an iced matcha green tea. 

• Brain Teasers - Been playing Cross Logic on my phone about once a week. More often in the early days. 🧩🧠

• Music - Listen, Sing, Dance - I’ve been hearing Lola Young’s Messy quite a bit as I’ve been out and about, so I put that on play a few times when I’ve been home. Planning to look for some chill music for downtime and journaling. Will post to 🎶✨Song of the Day and Music Thread!✨🎶 when I find something that fits what I'm looking for.

• Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate - I’m very happy that I’ve been hitting my water intake target for most of this past week. 👍🏼 

• Emotional Wellness - I read through the NIH article and determined that the “Get Quality Sleep” is the one that is my biggest hurdle of the 6 strategies presented in the article. I’ve made significant improvements in this area over the last 18+ months but there’s still plenty of room for improvement. 

         The first recommendation for better quality sleep on the "Get Quality Sleep" section is “Go to bed and get up each day at the same time.” I’m much better at the latter - I tend to get up around the same time every day, the majority of time without an alarm. This often occurs even if I don’t go to bed at the same time every night. My circadian rhythm gets an A+ in that regard, I guess. 😉 Getting to bed at the same time isn’t as consistent, but it's something I've been trying (and will continue to try) to work on for the rest of the month (and the ones to follow until I can get it down).

• Stretch (30 Minutes) - Decided to break up my stretching this week - 10 minutes in the morning before starting my day; another 10 minutes after lunch, focusing mainly on my hands, wrists, neck and shoulders; and another 10 minutes, focusing on my legs while waiting for  dinner to finish reheating. Some nights I added some additional stretching by way of yoga. 

• Pamper Yourself - I had a gift certificate for a Thai massage 💆🏻‍♀️ and decided this week was the time to redeem it. It was one of those times where you don’t know how much you needed something until after it’s been done. Ahhhh…

• Spring Stroll (30 Minutes) - Had a few errands over the past weekend and decided to do all the ones I could by walking to the various places. Plan on doing the same this coming weekend. 👟

Hoping to continue with a couple of these activities and work on marking off a couple other squares as we head into the middle of the month, including getting outdoors (and remembering sunscreen) as the we're supposed to see some warmer temps over the weekend. I have a few new sunscreens I want to try out so the timing is good; will post thoughts on those SPFs to National SPF Day ☀️ at a later date.

Looking forward to hearing about and drawing inspiration from everyone's wellness activities. 

[CorgiMommy]

Grand idea for getting stretches in each day @itsfi 

[itsfi]

@CorgiMommy, every little bit helps.

[jaaayp]

I love your stretch method @itsfi ! I've been trying to do all 30 mins at once and I have a calendar notification for it that I keep skipping over!! This is a wonderful idea to implement!

[itsfi]

@jaaayp, you may already get your stretching in if you’re stretching/warming up  during your pre and post cardio workouts or weightlifting sessions. 

[ather]

@itsfi  Great job!! That crossword app looks fun! And that healthy meal looks delicious! Great way to use up ham! And a massage sounds so good! It sounds like you needed it! Great job! 👏 

[itsfi]

Thank you @ather; the logic game is a fun; well, I think so - I know those types of games aren't for everyone. With the sun being out and the weather warming up, big bowls of salad will be part of the menu more often, though I'll still keep cooked veggies in the rotation as well. 

[Samtian]

@itsfi Such great work! I used to have a logic puzzle app on my phone, I'll have to see if I still do. I love that you included that this month!

[itsfi]

@Samtian, it didn't occur to me instinctively that those types of games could also be considered self-care, so I appreciated recognizing that. I just have to remember not to play the logic game before bed as it can be addicting and that would most certainly not count as a digital detox before bed. 😂

[caitbird]

@itsfi  great job with your wellness activities! Your healthy meal looks delicious! I will have to check out that NIH article, it seems like a useful read. I could definitely always use tips for maintaining my emotional wellness. I'm glad you have been able to make improvements with your sleep, even if it's still a work in progress - any improvement is something to be celebrated! I think I've discussed with you before that I have ongoing struggles with insomnia and my sleep schedule, so it's something I am still working on as well. You've inspired me to do some research into ideas for improving my bedtime routine!

[itsfi]

Thank you @caitbird, I like the pragmatic part of the PDF checklist in that online NIH article. I can use it as a way to evaluate how my efforts are going and/or as a base for what to concentrate or work on for a period of time, and then, check off the list. Yes, list are great for keeping organized, but also great for having something to check off! 😁 

Ohhhh, I feel for you with the insomnia. It's exhausting, literally and figuratively. Sending lots of well wishes that you find a routine that can help with it. When you find what works for you, it's such a great feeling and I so want that for you, and quality sleep. 

[byme4u]

@

[itsfi]

@byme4u, breaking up the 30 minutes is a good hack when short on time or if a 30-minute stretch of time (pun intended) seems long or overwhelming. 

[PrettyPaint]

@itsfi Mmmm your healthy meal looks delicious. So colorful! I haven't heard of the game Cross Logic. I currently don't have any games on my phone that I play, unless Duolingo counts! 🙂

That's fantastic that you're staying hydrated! 

I'm the same with the sleep issues. I always wake up for good around the same time each morning (5:45/6am) regardless of when I get to bed. My main issue is waking up throughout the night and not being able to get back to sleep. I hope you're able to continue to improve your sleeping patterns. 

[itsfi]

Thank you @PrettyPaint; when I'm out and about, I sometimes walk by restaurants with outdoor seating and see these pretty salads that people have ordered. They look delicious, but it can get expensive if I were to order one every day, so lately, I've been trying to make a salad a few times a week, either for lunch or dinner, and have been experimenting with different salad toppings, lettuces, dressing, etc. Unless I'm making a green goddess salad, I've found that having some color to the salad makes it more appetizing - whoever said we "eat with our eyes first" was on to something; at least I can say that about myself most of the time. I think for me the key has been to have some variety of things to choose from in my fridge and cupboards, but not too much variety. 🤣 

I'm so impressed you’re learning another language. Count that Duolingo for your wellness bingo - either as a brain teaser or learning a new skill / developing an existing one. Oh, I've been more focused on my hydration since having a couple of experiences this year with being dehydrated. Ugh.

I hear ya on getting up in the wee hours of the morning and not being able to get back to sleep - it's horrible. I know for me that stress can be one of the causes of that. While I can try to manage that, it's still there. Recently, though, I have noticed that having certain foods before bed or later in the day seem to help with me being able to get back to sleep if/when I do wake up - either (a) a banana or some mango mid-to-late afternoon or (b) having a bowl of oatmeal or yogurt, both with berries (and, sometimes a drizzle of blue agave syrup) about 1-2 hours before bed. I've been doing more of the latter and have noticed that when I do have a small bowl, I don't get up in the middle of the night as much or when I do, I'm able to fall back asleep (which for the longest time I couldn't). 

[PrettyPaint]

@itsfi I need to get better with stocking better salad options. The produce by me hasn't been too impressive lately. I feel like half the time I buy veggies, they get wilted far too quickly. I'm not sure if I have actually tried a green goddess salad. I've purchased the dressing, but I'm guessing the actual salad it a bit different.

I'm glad the Duolingo counts. I do feel like foreign language study has to be great for cognitive health.

I'm sure stress is a big factor in my sleep issues as well. That's really fascinating that you've found a correlation between certain foods and sleep habits. Do you think it's mostly the inclusion of berries on the yogurt or oatmeal that helps? I know I've read that tart cherries help with sleep.

[itsfi]

Tell me about it @PrettyPaint. I've yet to hone the skill of striking the right balance of what's in my fridge at any given moment - it can look like a feast or famine in there. 😅 I've done a few rounds of trial and error but for me, it seems that keeping to 2-3 bags of lettuce at any one time is best, and, if 3, one of them should be spinach as that offers me some options - I can have that as a part of a salad or steam it or put it in another dish if I'm not feeling like a salad. I've been trying to have a Plan B, C and D (lol) in place to keep having to toss veggies because they're about to go bad. Would your veggies work in a smoothie or green juice, or soup? The latter you could freeze. Or, blending them into a puree and freezing in an ice cube tray for later use as a sauce. Or making spaghetti sauce out of them (and freezing that)?

I also try not to go overboard on salad toppers but that doesn't always go according to plan - also 2 or 3, and preferably 1 or 2 are something I can use in another couple of dishes during the week - the default is usually adding it to a veggie omelette or a tofu and veggie scramble on the weekends. 

Learning a foreign language is definitely exercise for the brain. How often do use Duolingo or get to practice the other language? 

The blueberries could be it - I did read it contains that same sleepy thing in turkey meat that helps our bodies produce serotonin. I feel like the combo of the blueberries and the things in yogurt and oatmeal help have been helping. I've been using lactose-free yogurt, and almond milk in my oatmeal, and the oats are naturally gluten free. I still get up once or twice during the night but, at least for the most part, I don't have the same issue of not being able to get back to sleep like I had been experiencing. *knocks on wood 😂