7 Practical Ways to Nourish Your Soul

We often try to nourish our bodies with good nutritious food, but what are we doing to nourish our soul? Just like our bodies need a well-balanced diet, exercise, rest and some love, our souls need regular care and attention too. However, often due to the crazy pace of life our spiritual health gets pushed to the wayside. So how can we nourish our soul?

7 Practical Ways to Nourish Your Soul:

1. Watch a sunrise

These days we spend a lot more time inside and less time enjoying and engaging with nature. This disconnection from nature takes a toll on our mind, body and spirit.

Have you noticed how animals greet the day with loud enthusiastic chatter? I think they’re onto something, there is some wisdom there.

Watching a sunrise can boost our energy and help to set our circadian rhythms, this simple act can also foster greater peace, stillness and gratitude. So even though it may be difficult to get out of bed (especially in winter) to watch the sunrise, your soul will thank you for it!

2. Feel the earth beneath your feet

We are bioelectrical beings and the human body carries a slight positive charge. Our cells are specialised to conduct electrical impulses. Electricity is required for the nervous system to send signals throughout the brain and body enabling us to think, move and feel. This positive electrical charge can build up in the human body.

The earth carries a negative charge and when we make a physical connection with the earth, we discharge that excess energy. The science behind this grounding action is said to have a healing effect at a cellular level and many health benefits. 

I’ve personally found grounding has a magical calming power! Whenever someone in our house is frazzled, wound up or has a particularly short fuse, it’s ‘say hello to the grass’ time. Shoes off and walk, sit or lie in the grass. Then take a few deep breaths and feel the tension release. Honestly, it’s like the crankiness gets sucked out of your body and calm returns. Works really well with kids and husbands. You have got to try it!

3. Keep a daily gratitude journal

We all have things to be grateful for from the simple little things to the great big things. An ‘attitude of gratitude’ has long been associated with feeling happier, greater emotional well-being, and a greater ability to deal with life’s challenges. 

Practicing gratitude helps us focus on the present moment and quieten the outside world. When we are present, we are more open to hearing our own intuition and soul’s messages.

Gratitude also has the power of manifestation. When we express gratitude for the things we already have, we create a space in our lives for more abundance.

Now keeping a gratitude journal doesn’t have to be a long and involved process! It could be as simple as keeping a notebook and a pen beside your bed and at the end of each day writing down what you are grateful for that day. Reading this journal is particularly helpful when you are having a crappy time, as it reminds you that the light will return soon.

4. Take a screen or social media detox

Put the phone down and back away? I promise you will be okay! Have you ever noticed how screens are kind of like sugar? They give us an instant hit of dopamine so we feel good, but once that fades, we are left hungrier than before. Spending more time in the ‘real world’ and less on screens is nourishing for the soul.

So how do we do a screen detox? Try taking Sundays off from social media. Leave your phone in the other room during mealtime. Replace TV with a book. Have a weekly board games night. Spend time with a loved one and talk to each other. Spend time in nature. The list is endless so find something that nourishes your soul and makes you smile!

5. Make sleep a priority!   

I’m going to put my bossy Mum/Naturopath pants on for a minute and say - Just do it! Doing anything good for us - mind, body or soul - is a whole lot harder when we are tired. For some reason pushing ourselves to the brink of exhaustion has become some weird badge of honour. Seriously, we need to push stop on this exhaustion merry-go-round and start prioritising the life-giving rejuvenation of a good night’s rest!

When you first make sleep a priority you might find yourself resisting the idea. And oh boy can I resist too. Say you decide your bedtime is 10pm, it means you actually have to be in bed at 10pm! Otherwise, if you’re anything like me you will find yourself getting around to it and still up at 11pm or asleep on the couch! At one point I had to make a rule that unless my hair was on fire, I was in bed at 10pm! A consistent routine is key and you will feel better for it.

 6. Get rid of clutter

A cluttered space leads to a cluttered mind. When you’re feeling overwhelmed with the chaos of life reclaiming a cluttered space is quite empowering. Reclaiming a space by organising and decluttering can help foster feelings of peace and stability and soothe the soul.

Decluttering can seem daunting, but with the right mindset and approach, it can be a fun and rewarding process. To get started, try to focus on one room at a time and set achievable goals. A good place to start is your bedroom closet or office desk.

Here's a simple strategy to help you declutter efficiently:

Set aside three bags or boxes for sorting your belongings.

1. Rubbish and recyclables.

2. Items to donate or sell.

3. Items to keep.

Focusing on sorting into these three categories, can help with decision-making and keep the decluttering process moving smoothly. When I cannot decide what to do with an item, I have found it really helps to ask myself ‘Does this item bring me joy? If the answer is yes, the item stays. If the answer is I don’t know or no, the item goes.

So get decluttering and you will feel lighter in the end!

7. Random acts of kindness

Whether it's as simple as holding the door open or treating a friend to coffee, these small gestures can make you feel good. Research indicates that engaging in acts of kindness not only brightens someone else's day but also boosts your own happiness.

Some simple ideas: compliment a stranger, ask someone how their day is going, smile or say hello to someone you haven’t met before, send a thoughtful card or a book to a friend. The act of kindness doesn’t need to be big to make an impact.

This list is by no means exhaustive, but I hope you find a new idea here (or maybe several!) to nourish your soul.

Much love & blessings,

Collette xx