It’s no secret….sometimes I get a little….overwhelmed! Beneath the (I hope!!) generally happy veneer I am quite often an anxious ball of nerves and overwhelm.

The juggle of two small children, a stressful ‘day job’, Hedgewild as a pretty full on side hustle, military life (i.e. moving every two years and an often absent husband PLUS no family support nearby), not to mention a global pandemic and the other awful things happening at the moment. Life can sometimes get a bit MUCH can’t it? Last year I suffered with ‘mental fatigue’ or burnout and I knew something had to change. I know, I know, boo hoo right? I recognise that there are a lot of people struggling with far more than I do, and I do try and shake myself out of a pity party when I start to feel anxious or down. But even the thought of ‘I shouldn’t be feeling like this’ can add to the mental angst.

So, for me, I have a few things that are my go to ‘time for me’ rituals when I feel like I am losing the plot and I thought it might be helpful to share….

• A long, hot bath with ALL the products. Luckily for me a I have quite a few products kicking around! But my go to always is lavender. Anything with lavender in. So bath salts, salt scrubs, bath oils. All of it. With a good book, or actually more likely for me, Country Living Magazine for real escapism.

• PUT THE PHONE DOWN. I step away from the constant stream of emails, DMs, comments, or just going down that ‘scroll hole’. Goodbye phone for a few hours.

• Stepping outside and listening to the birds. I know, a bit odd, but birdsong always takes me back to being a little girl in my Granny and Grandad’s garden. It makes me feel safe and secure. I even listened to it when in labour!

• Being IN nature. I’m not really a gardener, and moving all the time our gardens aren’t great. I find gardening quite frustrating. So instead of gardening I literally just watch nature. This could be bees buzzing about the clover on my lawn, or the wind rustling the long grass in my wildflower ‘meadow’. It’s just about being in the moment and zoning out for a bit.

• Getting out in to the sunshine. Scotland is being a bit gloomy so far this summer but when the sun is peeping out for 5 minutes, I throw my crocs on and run outside!

• Using ALL the products and taking time for a lengthy skincare ritual at the end of the day. I like to double cleanse, first with our Honey & Oatmeal Cleansing Bar and then with the Beauty Balm. I sometimes follow up with a floral water spritz and then more Beauty Balm on top….perfect just before bed.

We ran a questionnaire on stories a few months back and it was overwhelmingly obvious that you were all craving some ‘me-time’ rituals too. That’s why we have created our ‘Time for Me - minis collection’. An affordable collection of carefully curated products, to help leave you feeling relaxed in times of stress or when you just need a bit of ‘me time’.

Launching today, the set is perfect as a wellness gift for yourself or a loved one, you can find more details here.

I’d LOVE to know what your go to ‘me time’ rituals are, let me know in the comments!