Monday: A Gentle Solution// with LAP Ambassador Community
Winter is hard. Monday is hard. As part of our Tender Touch campaign, we're asking LAP babes to write about what it means to give themselves a tender touch. Our second post comes from some of the LAPS Ambassadors located all around the globe!
Do you have a special weekly self-care routine? What kind of rituals, processes or products are involved?
Eva: I am into self care more than ever right now. I do hot yoga 3 to 5 times a week to detox and stretch. On a daily basis, I try to use simple yet extra moisturizing products.
Annika: I am big on self care! Every night when I shower I put coconut oil all over my body in the shower! Such an amazing trick. My bedside table is stocked with way too many lip balms and hand creams- they are my weakness and cannot sleep without them! I burn a candle, incense, palo santo or sage every night. I also have an oil diffuser that I love. I started bullet journaling last year which I love, and my mom recently turned me on to this rose tea that is to die for!
Amanda: Each day is a day I consider special enough for a self-care routine. As a children's yoga teacher and creative consultant for holistic wellness brands, I am well aware of the tender care that I need each and every day. This starts with making sure I am living fully, wholy a life that is in line with my truest self. I wake up, meditate, yoga, journal and have breakfast -- all before 9am. My routine is minimal, simplistic and filled with authentic products. Lunch between 11-1pm and dinner before 8pm. All devices off by 9pm so I can start to relax, calm down and prepare for a good night’s rest -- the ultimate beauty secret. Choosing to surround myself around good people and clients is just the icing on the cake of my life. Teaching children yoga the power of breathe, movement and following their intuition is the joy of my life that I reserve for weekends <3
Lauryn: I always wash my face with cold water after the shower and the apply lotion and coconut oil all over to ensure that I seal in moisture.
When do you feel strong (physically, emotionally, intellectually)?
Hannah: Any chance I get to aid another creature - from a friend to a foe to a cow or an insect - especially when it wasn't planned. Even more so when no one knows about it. There is a true power in secret acts of selflessness.
Puno: When I've had a really great day that includes a few hours of self-care (including exercise) and I've gotten through my task list.
Joanna: After meditation + yoga.
Eva: Physically when I'm doing yoga. Emotionally when I am honest with myself and listen to my body. I know I need rest and I have no shame in staying in on a Friday or Saturday to do so.
Can you think of a problem that you solved through being kind and gentle?
Hilary: A lot of people are very afraid today. I find that people become much more receptive if you treat them with extra care and make sure that they feel heard.
Hannah: Combating a selfish, rage-based reaction from my father with self reflection and a gentle curiosity for reason, with no judgment, & a lot of patience, when he was once a militant and fearful/angry man. But it didn't just erase that negativity from happening to me, it reminded both of us of our individual potential for kindness and compassion. And how a gentle soul is NOT a weak one, it is one of the strongest.
Kate: All disagreements are better handled calmly and gently. All relationships, too.
What's your favorite song right now?
Kate: This Night Has Opened My Eyes - The Smiths
Michelle: Mystery Of Love - Sufjan Stevens
Joanna: Nina Simone - New Day
Annika: If You Go by Sticky Fingers or No Promises by A Boogie- can't decide!
Thank you for sharing with us, LAP babes! If you're reading this and interested in spreading the tender touch with LAP, please get in touch. xx
Photos were shot by Wendy Ching on film.