Living what I teach: My staying-well plan
As a psychologist, "practising what I teach" is not just a tidy phrase; it's essential to staying healthy, curious, and grounded in my work.
In clinical therapy, the final stage is often drafting a vidmakthållandeplan—a maintenance plan for staying well once the formal sessions finish.
This is my own staying-well plan. It isn't a rigid checklist or a claim that I have everything figured out. It is simply the personal compass, daily reminders, and gentle experiments I return to when life gets noisy.
1. Mindset & stance
How I relate to my own thoughts.
- Channel an inquisitive ten-year-old: My adult instinct under pressure is often to tense up and take on too much responsibility. My antidote is to choose playfulness: have fun, stay genuinely interested, and meet daily friction with "Well, isn't that interesting?" rather than self-reproach.
- Externalise noisy thoughts: I am not the narrator in my head. When self-doubt or catastrophic scenarios get loud, I write them down in plain ink on paper to see them clearly. Putting distance between myself and the chatter restores perspective.
- Drop the mind-reading: I try never to assume I know what others are thinking or expecting of me. I stick strictly to observable facts, and if something matters, I ask directly with warmth.
2. Energy & load
How I balance output with deliberate recovery.
- Dial up recovery when demands rise: Recovery is not an indulgence or a reward I have to earn; it's looking after my most basic needs. When pressure mounts, I protect the activities that restore my energy: a hot sauna, a run, walking near water, phoning a friend, or an unhurried dinner.
- Take micro-pauses and watch for hurry mode: I try to do one thing at a time. When I notice myself rushing, I treat that hurry as a dashboard warning to take a breath and shift down a gear. A 3-minute breathing space helps.
- Set a clean end-of-day boundary: Before closing my laptop, I take five minutes to jot down what got done and sketch a rough plan for tomorrow, so my brain knows the workday is over.
3. State & emotion
How I handle low mood, worry, and tough feelings.
- Action before motivation: When energy dips, I move my body first and evaluate how I feel afterwards. Waiting until I "feel like it" invites paralysis; movement creates its own momentum. I keep genuine pleasures booked in my calendar.
- Sort real problems from hypothetical ones:
- Happening right now? Break the problem down into small steps and solve what I can. Ask a friend or a colleague for help, if needed.
- Hypothetical "what ifs"? Acknowledge the anxiety, accept that the future is uncertain, and anchor back in the room. If thoughts persist, I set aside a dedicated 30-minute worry window.
- The two-step emotion check: I validate the feeling first—especially primary emotions like sadness—before deciding what to do. Emotions are signals, not marching orders.
4. Physical baselines
Taking my own basic needs seriously.
- The three anchors: Regular meals, steady daily movement, and protected white space on the calendar.
- Keep sleep boring: I keep my circadian rhythm steady with a regular wake-up time. If I wake in the night, I keep my mind dull and unengaged, reassuring myself that the body naturally catches up on deeper sleep.
- Physical check-ups: I treat physical aches with the same kindness as mental strain. If something hurts, I visit the doctor, dentist, or physiotherapist early instead of toughing it out.
5. Experiments & review
How I learn and stay accountable.
- Frame personal change as experiments: Instead of making grand resolutions, I test one specific behaviour for a defined period, observe what happens without judgement, and adjust.
- The six-month check-in: Every six months, I revisit this page over a quiet cup of coffee and ask myself three honest questions:
- Where am I taking on too much responsibility or rushing unnecessarily?
- Which recovery routines have I quietly abandoned?
- What gentle experiment would be fun to try next?
Next review date: 2027-03-29
Look after yourself! <3