HOL Ravenclaw

It’s a cold day in Herbology class, and as so often happens when the seasons start to turn, everyone has been getting sick! Half the people around you can’t stop coughing, while the others are continually nursing runny noses.

“If it weren’t for the temperature changing back and forth every day,” Professor Sprout says, looking none too pleased at the sight of everyone feeling so lousy.

But nothing has dampened the Snow Miser’s spirits. He is essentially waltzing around the greenhouse in a state of absolute glee as the first snow of the year softly begins to drift down from a gloomy gray sky above.

Twirling around, he exhales a stream of warm, foggy air from his mouth while explaining that, “You can see your breath when it’s about 45 degrees Fahrenheit out or below!”

Sprout joins the Heat Miser in his disapproving glances, but grabs a small sack from nearby, tugging the drawstrings open to reveal it’s filled with Peppermint Humbugs.

“Everybody take one. Yes, you too, dear,” she passes a piece of striped candy in your direction. “These will help everyone feel I bit better.”

Task:
At the sight of the humbugs, the Snow Miser snaps his fingers before gracefully moving his way to the front of the group to announce the next challenge will consist of sharing Wellness Tips with the class!

In a minimum of 100 words, tell us about any of your favorite tricks to use when you’re not feeling your best, or even preventative measures you might take. Can also poke around to find some new facts you hadn’t known before that fascinate you, or that you may wish to try in the future.

This task is worth 10 beans with an additional 10 bonus beans for completing all Week Three tasks by end of activity. Deadline is 11:59pm (HOL time) on Monday November 28th.

When I'm having a hard time falling asleep or I'm just stressed out during the day, I'll go onto YouTube and watch some ASMR videos. ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, which most people describe as the tingles you feel on your body when you hear or see something pleasant. I usually feel them when people flutter their fingers together and when they run anything over the scalp. Drawing on the back of someone or myself triggers those tingles as well. Not everyone will feel tingles with the same ASMR triggers as one other so someone may have to "shop around" until they find a trigger that works for them or an ASMRtist (a person who makes ASMR content) that works for them. The tingles really help me de-stress and calm my brain for sleep.

[OUT OF CHARACTER]
Although I have lived in very cold places over the years (a couple of years near Boston and eight months, including a
'mild' winter, in Finland) I have a hard time with cold; the temperature can be in the seventies and I can still find myself shivering uncomfortably, especially if wind is involved! While surrounding myself by heat can often help, I find that a more consistent solution is direct pressure; I can put a weighted blanket over myself, or squeeze my body - or even sleep or sit on arms or feet as needed. To be fair, I need to be careful to not apply too much pressure (or I end up getting numb)... but direct pressure can be very useful! And tight hugs are helpful too...

~OOC~

I live in a country where cold is freezing, we don't get snow and stuff, but we do get harsh winds and terrible downpours. When this happens, my body almost shifts into what I call an almost hibernating depressed state. I feel like I want to do nothing but just sit and stare at the ceiling. When this happens, I do one of three things. 1 Eating is the best way to keep me alive, especially if it's my favorites, so pasta, dumplings etc. It makes me happy. 2 I love to write, if I am in this mood, my writing becomes almost 100 times better. And lastly, I read. Reading makes me feel like I am doing nothing, because while I read, I think, I think of the worlds that are created in these books and I submerse myself in it. Alternately, so this should one of four things, I watch either Anime, J-dramas, K-dramas, Thai dramas, or just a regular movie.

In my experience, the best way of making myself feel better is to do some sort of exercise - I recently went for a long walk across the moors and I felt so good for days afterwards! The fresh air is great, and moving keeps you warm, plus the endorphins keep you feeling positive for a while afterwards. However, if the weather is miserable (as it is when I am writing this) I like to wrap up with a fluffy blanket, a hot cup of chai tea, and put a scented candle on whilst I do some self-care, like a face mask or painting my nails. I find that this makes me think more about things I have to look forward to, and I feel better about where I am right now.

While I am not the biggest tea drinker regularly, having a mug of tea when I don’t feel great has always been a great help to me. I also agree with Kalgri’s thoughts on self care. I always feel a bit nicer once I feel clean, so showering, putting lotion on and wrapping myself snugly in bed works great, though during these cold months I really have to work myself up to stepping into the shower. Then when it comes to occupying my mind, I’ll either read a book or put on a comfort tv show in the background. Depending on whether I feel bad mentally or physically, I also feel better if the space around me looks better, so I am occasionally overcome by the urge to clean and organize regardless of how I’m feeling. I do always feel better afterwards.

If I'm feeling a bit under the weather, I like to make myself a nice large cup of tea (with milk and sugar), settle in on my couch with a lovely warm blanket around me, watching something on TV (a favorite movie of tv show) and color. Yes, color... I have a number of what they call "adult" coloring books... of nature, mandala, landscapes and I even have a Harry Potter one. I have to have newly sharpened colored pencils and a pencil sharpener nearby (gotta have a nice point of those pencils you know). Coloring has always been a source of relaxation for me. There is something calming about it. I think it's because you can't rush through it, you have to slow down and take your time (staying in those lines can be challenging).

When I am not feeling my best, which is often, I like to make myself a nice cup of green Matcha tea or hot chocolate and put on some art asmr to relax. If I have things to do I would make sure that my day is planned out in my head from most energy consuming tasks first to lesser so that I can get it done first before my energy runs out. I take as many breaks as allow to drink something warm and cozy to comfort and bring my temperature up as I have a low temperature issue. Snacks in moderation helps but food helps most. I also like to listen to soothing or funny things when busy or stressed. Things like watching cute funny animal videos are the best.

I listen to a lot of music whenever I am feeling down. In fact, Ereshkigal (who's a close friend of mine) has stated that previously about me - she said that whenever I am feeling blue, I either go for writing poetry or listening to something. She's not wrong.

There are two types of songs that help me a lot when I am feeling blue. Paradoxically, the first type is the most melancholic type of song that you could potentially think about. Songs like No End, No Beginning come to mind - very melodic, soft, with a certain aetherial longing feeling to it.

And then there's the opposite side of the coin. Intense, strong and fierce songs, such as Skydweller also get me pumping and ready to take on the world. It's funny that both song styles are so opposite from one another, and yet they both work fine for me.

If you’re not feeling great on any particular day, my usual advice is to take a nap. For me, taking a nap tends to solve everything. Headache- Nap. Tired- nap. Any other reason- nap. It always helps even if it’s just a quick ten minutes. I’d recommend at least an hour, though, if there’s time for that in your day but anything is better than nothing. At least that is how it is for me anyway. The only other thing that is super important is ensuring you’re not dehydrated or heading that way. It’s such an easy trap to fall into and you usually don’t realise it until too late. We’ve all heard about having to drink water to keep hydrated, but it’s so true! It really does make you feel better afterwards. The only other thing I can think of to make you feel your best is to enjoy the small things in life. It might not seem like a lot, but it does make life more enjoyable, and you feel happier.

When I feel down I like to clean my house and any environment I am at the given time. However, most of the time, I end up cleaning my bedroom. I first clean everything that is in sight and then move on to cleaning from inside of the drawers and wardrobes. I re-fold all of my clothes and check if I need to do some laundry. I also do the dishes and check if I need to order some more groceries in case something is missing. Spending time organising my surroundings calms me down and makes me feel more at peace.

When I feel bad I like to take things slow. I usually prefer to be completely alone when that happens as I need to come to term with this myself and presence of other people greatly annoys me. I usually switch on a movie that I have already seen before, trying to avoid some family-friendly but more of True Crime genre. I grab some food and something to drink, most of the time an energy drink, and I rest and enjoy spending some quality time alone. This is the only thing that truly works for me. I cannot imagine not having one day like that in a week.