Stage One: Detaching From Stress.

Monday morning rolled around and I couldn’t sleep in past 7am UK time. Physically couldn’t go back to sleep. But considering I am normally up around 6am, it technically counts as a lie-in right?

 Showered, freshened up and luggage in a locker room for the morning, I already felt more at ease.

I took myself for a wander towards the harbour for breakfast. I had my laptop with me as I had read a review online that the locker room in the hostel didn’t appear particularly secure. So once I had chosen a breakfast spot, I got to some writing.

The simple act of having a Desayuno Español (Spanish Breakfast) by the beach in mid-twenty degree heat at 10am, began the process. I had a subconscious smile on being surrounded by things that brought me comfort and ease.

I lived in Spain for a couple of years as a child and, even though I have never been to Ibiza, it felt like home. Seeing and hearing Spanish everywhere. Visiting my favourite childhood jewellery shop Bijou Brigitte. Eating a tortilla baguette for breakfast, I could already begin to feel myself detaching from the anxiety I had flown out with.

Stage Two: Taking Action and Switching Up The Routine.

By Monday afternoon, in the realisation that I actually did deserve some time out, I bought a copy of El País newspaper and spent time in the space of nothingness. Nowhere to be except at Playa D’En Bossa by 10pm. An easy mooch!

However my brain does not simply just agree to give into such things.

After lunch I started having some anxious thoughts. Life-questioning thoughts. From having zero time to sit still for the last half a year to having a whole day to do nothing except drag your suitcase over a mini hill, meant thoughts were suddenly able to burst free.

Who am I without work, or a couple of other commitments that took up a lot of time? Who even am I anymore?

I’ve done a lot of work on myself for the last half a year, me now does not respond in the same way me even a couple of months ago would… It’s safe to say I was lost and a bit anxious.

Some action was needed.

So I grabbed the copy of

Eat Pray Love

. I put my nose in and glued myself to Gilbert’s story for another 50 pages.

Try as I might though I simply couldn’t get into it. Weirdly I loved the film, but I really couldn’t get into the style of writing. The book was put to one side. Fortunately at this point it had got to 10pm and my friends had landed.

We got dinner, caught up and slept.

Tuesday morning I made sure I got my thoughts out to one of the girls and all felt right with the world again. We went for a morning pool swim, had breakfast on the beach, went for a wander up the beach and then donned our best sundresses and took an Insta gander into Ibiza Town.

Stage Three: Being Present.

I focused really hard on listening to how my friend was doing. To the colours of the apartments. The conversations in Spanish happening around me about seashells and how tired shop assistants were. The sun on my back. The soft salty air brushing off the harbour. Everything I could to connect with what was happening in the present.

And as I did so, I found myself connecting with my creativity and self-expression. I found myself unbothered by teenage girls who wouldn’t move out of my shot and the occasional smell of sewers.

I was relaxing, standing taller, smiling wider and connecting stronger.

In being present, I was able to spend some time lounging in a beach chair for an afternoon watching some hot Italian guys play ball, dance to Martin Solveig all the way through until 6am and laugh really hard at the experiences we were having.

This afternoon, it then hit me.

Where I was lost about the next dream to live into on Monday, on Thursday I had the image to live into. In stepping outside of my head and going with the flow of my surroundings, I was able to create the next step of the dream.

Not just see it, *feel* it. (I’ll talk more about this in another post very soon).

Sat in the departure lounge at Ibiza Airport with no hotspot to speak of and non-existent wifi, I am sad to say goodbye to a fun little life interlude. Yet excited for the next leg. I haven’t slept much, but I feel rested. I’ve not been too active, but I feel energised.

And there you have it!

How do you relax best?

Han x