The CF Team's Tried-And-Trusted Wellness Rituals

June is wellness month here at Citizen Femme, and we’ve asked the team to share their tried-and-trusted wellness rituals to help ease stress.

Including the action that clears our beauty editor’s busy mind and our fashion editor’s favourite comfort activity, these are the wellness rituals we trust to safeguard our wellbeing whenever stress or anxiety threatens.

If you need to manage rising stress levels but are not sure how, this is our team’s advice – and a good place to start.

Sheena Bhattessa, Founder

@sheenabhattessa

There is little I find more relaxing than listening to (or indeed playing) piano music and reading a book. It takes my mind off absolutely everything, it’s almost meditative. Recently, I’ve made a concerted effort to ensure ‘downtime’ is an integral part of my daily life. This usually manifests as 30 minutes in the evening with piano music playing in the background as I read. It’s very calming. I avoid regular late evenings so I generally find that I can include this in my daily schedule.

 

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Becki Murray, Beauty Editor

@beckimurray_

I’ve always found that the best way to clear my head is to throw on my trusty Asics Gel-Nimbus trainers and go for a run. (Fittingly, the brand’s tag line is actually #SoundMindSoundBody). Whenever I’m on deadline for a an article, or nervous about a big decision, I almost instinctively find myself pounding the pavements. I like to leave my sportswatch at home too (otherwise it risks making me too competitive!). It doesn’t matter how far or fast I go, but I’ll only return home when my mind feels more steady and certain.

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Gemma Louise Deeks, Contributing Fashion Editor

@gemmalouisedeeks

Something I love to do as a wellness practice is to find a new vegan recipe and cook it from scratch. I find this the ultimate act of self love, feeding yourself a nutritious meal that nourishes your body – and your mind.

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Katie Silcox, Managing Editor

@katiesilcox

Mine is really simple, yet not always easy – trying to get enough sleep. I used to be great at it, nodding off within minutes and not waking up for at least the next eight hours. More recently, I’ve found that I often struggle to fall asleep and wake up super early (often multiple times throughout the night too). I’m trying to combat this with good sleep hygiene: going to bed at the same time most nights; making sure my bedroom is cool and dark; wearing a sleep mask; using a lavender spray on my pillow; and powering up the Headspace app’s sleep sounds – the sound that works best for me is brown noise.

 

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Bibiana Obahor, Head of Graphic Design

@bibs.s

A friend of mine introduced me to Pilates this year, and it’s truly been a calming practice for me, helping to balance both my mind and body. It’s quickly become my go-to for relieving stress and maintaining flexibility. For home practice, I swear by the Alo Moves app – it offers a wide variety of classes and caters to all levels.

 

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Jasmin Aujla, Partnership Director

@jasminaujla

Getting outside for a walk first thing in the morning! There’s no better practice that I do for myself daily than this regular routine, come rain or shine (naturally in London it’s always more rain than shine). If you’re feeling groggy, tired, overwhelmed or anxious, it’s impossible to not feel even marginally better after a 20-minute solo walk. Sometimes I’m listening to a podcast, sometimes just music, or sometimes just my thoughts.

 

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Ella Mansell, Editorial Assistant