Mind Moments
Welcome to our new weekly post #mindmoments.
Every week, we will be posting one of our favourite things that helps us give our mind a moment to rest. Everyone knows how hard it is to slow down or pause during the day with work, kids or just life in general. These are just little suggestions that give us a moment to pause and will hopefully give you the inspiration to do so too.
Our first recommendation is lavender pillow spray.
Now this isn’t ground breaking or new but golly is it good. If you’re anything like us, over the past few weeks getting a good night’s sleep in this heat has been tricky. But even without the high temperatures giving us grief, sometimes getting a good night’s sleep can be really hard.
There a lot of options on the market for “pillow spray” but we have our three tried & tested favourites at home that help give us a little more shut eye.
1
thisworks® deep sleep™ pillow spray
It can be found in lots of stores and also bought online. It is slightly more on the pricey side. However, we feel the scent lasts a long time and isn’t too strong when your head hits the pillow. Highly recommend.
2
Botanics Peaceful Night pillow mist.
This is a cheap and cheerful version from Boots. It’s a much better price point than the thisworks® and is popular in our house, in fact our current bottle is almost empty so clearly one of our favourites.
3
M&S Sleep apothecary pillow mist
This one is the best value for money with 100ml for only £8 and is in a stylish bottle but it would be our runner up. The scent is very strong to start but fades the fastest once you’re in bed. Mine was a gift and I can’t say I would reach to use this one first out of this trio.
According to the Sleep Foundation adults ideally need between 7 – 9 hours a night. We all know that a serious and consistent lack for sleep can be linked to problems such as a weakened immune system, high blood pressure, heart disease and depression. The essential oils in lavender act as a mild sedative for our nervous system allowing us to relax and hopefully fall asleep a little easier.
If you haven’t already, give a pillow spray a try this week and see if you get a few extra precious minutes of sleep. Another tip is to bring your favourite version with you when travelling to make your hotel room immediately feel a bit more homely and help you get a good night’s rest somewhere new.
WEEK 2
This week is one of our favourites go-to activity when we want to stop doom scrolling. It’s needlework! Between us both we’ve got most things covered. Tamsin is a fan of tapestry, while I've currently got a few cross stiches on the go.
There's a lot of evidence that shows how doing mindful activities, such as sewing, has huge benefits for your mental health. It can help lower cortisol, elevate serotonin as well as strengthen cognitive function. Not to mention it gets us off our screens, which we all need to do a little more often.
For us, using our hands and the repetitive nature of it definitely helps in unwinding at the end of the day and keeping any anxiety in check.
Some of our favourite options are:
The Fabled Thread
Tamsin is making good progress on this cushion cover from Fabled Thread. It's called 'How The Whale Got Its Throat' from a collection inspired by Rudyard Kipling's Just So stories. It’s a larger project so don’t expect it to be done overnight but it’s something to really get your teeth into.
They are slightly more expensive for a single kit but for the amount of time it takes to complete, and the beautiful finished product you are left with to decorate your home forever, we believe it's money well spent.
Smaller kits
There are a lot of options out there for small cross stitch kits. They come with many different designs with different levels of difficulty. The difference from the embroidery is there is no image to follow so it requires more concentration to count the stiches. For me, this is great for occupying my mind as it’s hard to focus on my daily stresses when I am counting my stitches! These small packs can be found on amazon or even in your local garden centre. They come with everything you need and are a great way to start this new hobby.
There are lots of different types of crafts out there that are really worth trying. Knitting is also a favourite. Wool and a basic set of needles are available at lots of charity shops and YouTube tutorials will get you going with the basics. Come winter, many of my scarfs are from previous knitting projects and they still hold up!
If you suffer from anxiety and need something to just slow down your mind and give you a bit of light relief, I can highly recommend picking up a needle and thread. Your mind can’t focus on two things at once so have a break with this week's #mindmonents suggestion.
WEEK 3
This week, we're highlighting two apps we use that have helped us.
When my anxiety started getting worse during Covid, I found myself needing to take a moment to regulate myself and get my breathing under control. I hadn't even noticed but, being constantly tense, meant I'd stopped taking deep breaths without realising. I also started finding it very difficult to get to sleep. I didn't have the skills to know what to do, so I turned to the Calm app.
I don't tend to listen to the sleep stories, voiced by celebrities such as Harry Styles and Matthew McConaughey, but I do use it for the short Panic SOS tracks and the follow along breathing exercises. Having these tools easily accessible really helped me get quick relief in those early days.
They also have some lovely wind down tracks to help your mind get ready to switch off for the night. My favourite playlists are Infinite Ambient for Relaxation, and I still fall asleep most nights to MDR Inspired Bilateral Sleep. If you want to try before you buy, there are a few tracks available on the free version.
The second is one for anyone who talks themselves out of a good mood before they've even had their first coffee. It's an app called ThinkUp, and the idea is refreshingly simple. You record your own voice saying some tailored affirmations that resonate with you, then let the app play them back to you, usually while you're falling asleep or having a quiet five minutes with a cuppa.
We were sceptical at first; it does feel a bit odd hearing yourself say "I am calm and capable" back to you. But there's something about it being your own voice, rather than a strangers, that seems to give it real impact.
There is genuine research behind this too, a 2024 brain imaging study found that hearing our own voice activates different regions than hearing someone else's, particularly ones linked to self-identity and emotion regulation, which may be why it feels more convincing coming from us. The app also has categories for pretty much everything, gratitude, confidence, sleep, so you can pick whatever feels most useful that day.
It's a small thing, but it's a nice little pause button for your brain, and a gentle way to end the day on a kinder note than doom scrolling ever does.
Enjoy your week, and if you have any favourite apps that work for you, do let us know.