Self-harm can become a habit that is difficult to stop. Below are two tips to help you replace it with a healthy, healing choice.
How to Make Your Own Mental Health Zine
Zines (pronounced “zeens”) are self-published booklets that anyone can make. You can make them different sizes, and put anything you’d like inside them. Below is a prompt to make your own mental health zine, instructions on how to create it, and four examples of mental health zines created by The Strange is Beautiful’s staff.
Make Your Own Self-Affirmation Flag Banner with Janie Johnson
Janie Johnson is a survivor of sexual and domestic abuse, and creates self-affirmation flags to help her healing process.
Tell us about your self-affirmation flag banner.
My affirmation flag started in an art therapy group I participated in last fall. We were encouraged to create our own affirmations or choose from a list. I found the process of choosing resonant affirmations and creating something nurturing for myself incredibly therapeutic. On top of that, at the end of the process I was able to take the project home with me, allowing me to revisit the feelings of self-nurturing whenever I needed to. I kept my favorite affirmations on a list, and I continue to add and modify them. My flag is in my bedroom, and I also keep a digital version on my phone so I can access it wherever I go.
How to Self-Massage as an Act of Self-Love
Self-massage is one the greatest forms of self-love. Set aside time for date night with yourself, get naked (I’m not kidding), and simply use your fingers to knead and caress your skin from your scalp to your toes while talking to your body. Ask your body how it’s feeling, what it needs, what it wants, and tell your body thank you and I love you. I like to start standing up, and work my way down to my feet so I’m in a forward fold with my hands on top of my feet (see this link). Hang there and breathe in relaxation, bliss and love. You can use coconut oil, massage oil, or essential oils such as lavender to calm, or peppermint to open and bring down inflammation.
5 Roots of Wisdom From a Bonsai Tree
For Mental Health Awareness month, we had a few Instagram Live events. One of them was on May 10 with Alex Chavez for “Bonsai as Self-Care.”