Tales of Slow & Simple | 02
My slow living journey so far
In my Tales of Slow & Simple series, I’ll be sharing with you my journey of embracing and living a slower and simpler life; one that is filled with little moments of joy, discovery, healing, mindfulness, and intentionality, and one that prioritises my energy for what matters most.
For this month’s Tales of Slow & Simple, I thought I would share with you a little bit more about my slow living journey, how it started, why I decided to embrace a more slower way of living, and how it continues to play a huge part in my day-to-day life.
My journey into slow living began back in 2017, after being diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease. Following a nine-day hospital stay, I was finally able to go home, but it took almost a year before I started feeling like myself again. During that time, I realised just how much stress, anxiety, and constant busyness were taking a toll on both my mind and body. I was working in retail at the time and kept going to work right up until the day I was admitted, despite being in constant pain, low on energy, barely able to eat, and struggling with debilitating symptoms.
After coming out of hospital I had to have quite a few weeks off work, so my body could begin to heal and recover. It forced me to slow down, and I became much more conscious of my health and well-being. Even though I hadn’t really heard the term slow living before back then, my mind and body craved a slower pace of life.
Honestly, even when I was younger, I was never attracted to the fast-paced, hustle-driven lifestyle. It simply never appealed to me. I guess we're conditioned to believe that's how we're supposed to live, as if it's the only path to success in life. But it was this fast-paced way of living that started having a huge negative impact on my well-being.
Slow living has made me more mindful of how I use my time and energy. It has also encouraged me to be more intentional, focus on the joy and magic in everyday life, savour those joyful moments, and has helped me heal both mentally and physically. I’ve also faced other health challenges since childhood too, including PoTS, and it’s definitely helped with these too.
I think there can be some confusion around the idea of slow living. Many of the YouTube videos I see portray it as a lifestyle where people live in remote cottages, practice self-sufficiency, and are surrounded by nature, often tending gardens or leading quiet, rural lives. Even though this is the absolute dream, and this version of slow living is beautiful and inspiring, it can give the impression that if we want to embrace slow living, we have to have this particular lifestyle, which isn’t true. You don’t need any of that to embrace slow living. Slow living is accessible to everyone.
Just simple little things like taking a few moments out of your day to do the things you love, setting positive boundaries, getting an earlier night in bed, getting outside for some fresh air, connecting with family and friends, practicing self-care, going for a walk, spending time amongst nature, practicing mindfulness and gratitude, are all wonderful ways to embrace slow living. They are the things that I have done myself to incorporate slow living in my day-to-day life. It’s making time for what matters most.
“Slow living is a mindset whereby you curate a more meaningful and conscious lifestyle that’s in line with what you value most in life.” - Slow Living LDN.
Slow living is a continuous positive journey in my day-to-day life. Sometimes it simply looks a little bit like this: Savouring a few extra moments during breakfast, reading some pages of my book, stepping outside in the garden, making myself a hot drink, doing some pilates, and even just taking a few deep breaths.
I'd love to hear about some of the slow moments you enjoy adding to your day?
Until next time…
🌸 Follow me on Instagram - clementineroseb
🌱 For updates head on over to my Facebook page - clementineroseb
👩🏼💻 You can get in touch with me here.
Love that you clarified that we don’t have to live in the country side to live the slow life! The simplest practices can make such a difference. I have Ulcerative Colitis (thought it was chrons for years!) and several other autoimmune diseases and slowing down has been key in managing those.
Lovely post and I agree that we are led to believe that “hustle culture” is the only way to be successful. I’m just starting out on my slow(er) living journey so your piece is really inspirational.