8 Hobbies That Rewired My Brain
“My friend...care for your psyche...know thyself, for once we know ourselves, we may learn how to care for ourselves.” - Often attributed to Socrates
Cooking
For me, cooking is a form of arts and crafts that extends to all my senses. I love to use my hands, especially when I need to clear my head. When I cook, whether I am experimenting, cooking something familiar, or following a complex recipe; it helps me to focus on something outside of myself that still has the ability to showcase my personality. I love food and the different ways to play with flavors and textures. When I find a dish I truly love, I make it a point to learn how to make it, then make it my own. There is no greater pride that I have than my ability to not only feed myself, but to feed myself well.
Strength Training
Every time I get injured, I’m reminded of how much I hate to be immobile. The toll that it takes on my mental well-being and my overall health. I know that makes it seem like I get injured a lot, and there was a time when I would argue that I don’t. However, I recently took inventory of how many times I have been injured and how the severity seemed to have increased each time. Turns out, your girl is a mess. As I get older, healing takes longer and so I have to prioritize taking care of my body more and more. Not only does it help with my stability and make sure I’m less likely to get hurt, but it also helps to release endorphins and improve my mental health and general mental sharpness.
Journaling
Speaking of mental health, I have picked up journaling again. There was a time when I was younger, where I would consistently write in my diary to get out my thoughts, fears and aspirations. I stopped rather cold turkey due to having very nosy and what I would consider to be downright disrespectful siblings. I told myself that I would pick it up again once I lived by myself, but the fear of not being able to keep my private thoughts private, always held me back. Now that I have gone through some pretty intense chapters in my life and have the proper privacy, I have made it a consistent exercise to clear my mind and organize my thoughts.
Plant Care
As someone who has only ever had fish growing up, I still maintain that I do not want pets in general. A fantastic alternative for me to still practice being nurturing and seeing something grow, is plant care. I like to have active plants such as Peace Lilies and Monsteras because they react immediately to the care that you give them. I have to be very intentional with where they are situated, how much sun and water they get and pay attention to their overall health. I have to be intentional with them and not as passive as I could be with succulents, for example. I’m happy to say that my plant babies are all in generally good health. My plants definitely thrived a lot more in environments such as coastal California and London where humidity and lack of frost made them happy.
Strategic Games and Puzzles
There are times when I know I have slipped into just thinking about work, or quite the opposite, I start doom scrolling socials. I have to be very intentional in limiting things that seem either repetitive or as though they are ensuring that my brain isn’t stimulated correctly. When I fail to see patterns or think on my feet, I try to do something that gets the synapses firing again. This mainly comes in the form of various games such as scrabble, puzzles, sudoku, mahjong, or exercises on Cognifit. I need these things to ensure that in a world where it is now easy to turn off your brain, that I still find ways to keep mine sharp.
Zero-Tech Days
Speaking of brainrot. The main way that I like to get out of thoughtless cycles, is to leave the phone in the bedroom. This really can only happen on the weekend or when I have time off of work since my work demands that I be available via mobile, which forces me to see message apps and email constantly. On the days where I can completely detach from technology, I like to get outside, read or work on a puzzle. In this day and age, there is always someone who is upset with me the next day for ignoring their calls or messages, but they tend to understand when I say that it was a zero-tech day. Adults find it hard to fully detach, so once I state that it was done intentionally, irritation turns to admiration.
Personal Haircare
As a black woman with very 4c hair, my hair is a labor of love. Haircare is self-care, which is self-love. Every wash day is a process, anywhere from 4 hours to 8 hours depending on if I first have to take out braids and install them again after washing and deep conditioning. Growing up, I had a bit of a complicated relationship with my hair, but over time and with increased patience for myself, I pride myself in what I can create with my hair and how versatile it is. On haircare days, I don’t like having visitors. I take the day to myself to listen to music, eat what I want and watch movies or binge watch a show. I no longer fear these days, I embrace them.
Travel
Last, but not least: travel. You can read more on Why I travel in my very first post on Comfort’s Compass. I can’t help but to discover a little more about myself and how I operate, feel, and think with every new destination that I explore. I have learned to let go of what I see as “norms”. I have learned new languages. I have experienced flavors that I never would have if I didn’t leave home. I have entered into and either been shunned by or welcomed into different cultures. It’s the most remarkable thing to realize that I will constantly be growing and learning about the greater world around me, how to move through it, and how to become more open while also building a strong resilience to hardship.
What are some things that you do to rewire your brain and alter how you think? I would love to hear about it!
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