So an interesting thing happened to me yesterday…
After having to cancel teaching the other day because my eyes and throat were practically swollen shut and a trip to the minute clinic to discover it wasn’t strep or mono, I ventured back to a more natural approach: I went to a doctor that specializes in acupuncture and Chinese medicine – and you will NEVER believe what advice he gave me…
The thing I love about alternative medicine is that it doesn’t simply focus on the symptoms, it searches for the root cause. So while there were some interesting discoveries, one thing he could tell from my pulse was that not only was I not sleeping well, but that my ‘spirit’ was extremely fatigued.
His advice?
The biggest thing that resonated with me is that I need to begin ‘winding down’ 90 minutes before I plan on going to bed – 90 MINUTES! I always say I have a difficult time shutting my brain down, but this really put it into perspective. So here are the top three things he suggested to do that:
1. Take a bath (I like the ultimate detox bath from Dr. Hyman using essential oils)
2. Read a fiction book (it’s literally been over a decade since I read fiction – I had to ask my friend Jessica for advice while standing in the library.)
and this is the kicker…
3. COLOR!
Yes, he said to color before bed. it is fairly mindless and transports you away from whatever may be bothering you that day.
I was about to buy one of those adult coloring books I’ve been hearing so much about lately, and while beautiful, I’m a big believer in practicing the behavior before making a purchase. However, it was interesting to see just how many stress-relieving adult coloring books there were available out there!
Free Christian Adult Coloring Page Printables
There are many free adult coloring page printables filled with scripture or just positive images and thoughts. Check out these free adult coloring pages from Coloring Faith:
Adult Coloring Page Books
And walking into Michaels, look at what IMMEDIATELY greeted me inside the front door:
Anti-Stress Coloring Pages for Adults
However, after a quick internet search, I found exactly what I was looking for: “Zen & Anti-Stress Coloring Pages for Adults“
And while someday I may progress to a bigger book (most likely when I find a coupon), for now, I’m happy coloring my way off to sleep for free.
I figured if I’m dealing with this, some of you might be as well, so happy coloring and I pray you sleep as sweetly tonight as I did last night!