4 Time to rest

3 Get out into the world

Whether it’s a bucket-list holiday or a few days camping by the coast, there’s much to be gained from leaving your four walls behind and taking a break from the daily routine. Travel involves new experiences, and new experiences broaden our perspective, making us more adaptable and empathetic. Research shows that the more new experiences you have while away, the more restorative and memorable your holiday will be – and if you learn a new skill, such as a sport or language, there’s an added mental health boost. We also tend to be more active on holiday, with the results of a large study showing that our preferred environment for exercise is by water. When you’re by the sea, you’ll also find that meditation and mindfulness come more easily, as your heart rate naturally slows and your mind clears. Try just sitting and listening to the waves, and thinking about where you’d like to be in a life without limits.

Few of us get enough rest, yet it’s during the moments of stillness when the magic happens. ‘When we’re rested, we’re more able to make decisions from a place of clarity,’ says Paula Hines. Savasana (where you lie down at the end of a yoga session) is an example of active rest that is deeply restorative. Ideally, allow up to 20 minutes, plenty of time to switch to a parasympathetic nervous system state. Follow these tips to set yourself up in a supported savasana, so you can completely relax:

● Use a cushion or pillow to support your head and neck.

● Adding a support under the knees with a pillow or yoga bolster makes it kinder on your back.

● If your heels don’t touch the floor, take a rolled-up blanket or towel and place under your ankles.

● Cover your body with a blanket and your eyes with a folded scarf.

5 Keep a journal

Whether you like to write, draw or both, journalling is a helpful way to express how you’re feeling in the moment, and also enables you to reflect back. Often, you can feel like nothing has changed in your life or you’re not moving anywhere, but if you look back a year or even a few months the chances are a lot more has changed than you realise. Start by just writing a sentence a day or doing a small doodle or sticking something on the page, such as a ticket or picture. You could make it a more list-focused bullet journal, where you write down things you need to do or have done, things you’re grateful for, and the people you appreciate or admire. A nature journal will encourage you to notice things in the natural world and track what moves over time. If you’ve got a difficult decision to make or are going through challenging times, writing can help you process your emotions. One study showed that writing for 15 minutes a day about a difficult experience led to improved feelings of wellbeing and better sleep. You could also use your journal to envisage the things you want to do in the future. Keeping a vision board of pictures and words relating to your dreams and goals can help you understand what it is you’d like to manifest.