Re-Boot You, Boo

This Sunday clocks go back an hour, a groan-inducer for those who feel varying negative effects from the change to their circadian rhythm.

The unsyncing of our natural cycle – our 24-hour rhythms are also found in animals, plants, fungi and even cyanobacteria – kicks off for many poor sleep, low energy, hunger, malaise and mood swings, making right now prime time to activate some dark season harm reduction using simple re-boots:

Re-Boot Your Sleep: So Dreamy – Tiny tweaks can make significant impact at night: turn your phone to silent, charging it away from your bed (use a regular clock with a gentle “alarm”); get 20 minutes of exercise every morning; have all caffeine before 11 am; drink alcohol with dinner, not after; set a screen-time cut off one hour before bed; wind down with mindfulness meditation; have a soothing bath, drink chamomile tea; spritz lavender hydrosol in your bedroom (I use Penny Lane – $10.99 PennyLane.com.)

Re-Boot Your Thinking: You Affirm Anyway – If you’re someone in a negative mindset who feels it’s hard to develop a positive one, consider this: You got to your current mindset by affirming how blech life is – a more positive one is the same thing in reverse. I give this starter affirmation to my most stubborn coaching clients: “I like the idea of ________.” For example: “I hate all the bad news everywhere” can be reframed: “I like the idea of noticing more good around me.” This better spin – without getting all Pollyanna yippee-skippy – then attracts further better thoughts the more you thought re-boot.

Re-Boot Your Heart: Keep Calm – MusicForMoods ($3.99 MusicForMoods.com) is a research-based app from Sweden that senses your heartbeat when you put your finger on your device’s camera, creating brief breathing exercises to calming music that guides you to optimal breathing and heart rate. Great before gigs, meetings, after intense conversations, or because spring seems so far away.

Re-Boot Your Relationships: Call Mama – Checking out during summer is easy-breezy, said the columnist who lived on Toronto Island throughout summer 2016. Take time now to reconnect with family and friends, even if it’s a text to let people know you’re alive and that the sand is finally all gone from your buttcrack. Make in-person dates with the uplifters in your life, but guard your orbit from the soul-suckers you must still interact with (do this re-boot wisely; show me your friends, I’ll show you your future.)

Re-Boot Your Vision: What Lies Ahead? – With a critical eye, set autumn / winter goals for your personal and professional lives. How do you want to grow? How can you best set yourself up for success? Create a six-month timeline to achieve what you want, using it to create first steps, focus, and direction. Add power to your dreams by creating a vision board, a concept many snicker at but my vision wall helps me reap wonderful manifestations.

Re-Boot Your Bod: Skin Is In – As temperatures drop your skin gets drier. Gradually build up the amount of moisture you give your skin and the frequency with which you give it, starting now. From the neck down, I swear by dry-skin brushing. It unclogs pores, excretes trapped toxins, and keeps skin polished. Visit MindBodyGreen.com for a tutorial on how to properly dry skin brush. And exercise, even if it’s just taking the stairs.

Re-Boot Your Diet: You Are What You Eat – Which means I’m a lot of vodka. But I’m also a lot of fresh juice, superfood-enriched smoothies, organic vegetables and snacks and desserts, and a weirdo who eats clay, does coffee enemas, and takes apple cider and aloe vera shots. Call it much, but as someone who likes to party and who takes a powerful HIV drug daily, I call it balance. Seek your own balance based on advice from your doctor and other health experts, and your budget. As we enter a time of year that challenges us all, it’s important to remember that no one will take care of you, unless you take care of yourself.

Sharing is caring! If you’ve got a re-boot that helps you be better – please leave a comment below. If you’ve got questions about the re-boots above, let ’em rip in the comment section below as well.

– A version of this post was originally published in 24 Hours, where I write the weekly spirituality column, Spirit & The City. To read other selected Spirit & The City columns click here.