Embracing Autumn: Preparation and Well-being

Autumn is a new beginning for everyone. It's the beginning of school, a new school year. It's a new beginning in terms of what nature brings to us, so we get loads of seasonal produce and we may face challenges as to what do we cook with those produce. I believe there's a lot of preparation that needs to be done in the autumn but even more so in the winter or that transition between summer months and winter months is very important because lots of people go into the winter not knowing exactly what support is available, not knowing how to prepare themselves and their health for the winter and it's important that we do that good time. It's important that we have the resources available to share with the community so they all know where to reach out for additional support. They all know if they need to eat a more balanced diet in the winter, how they can do that. So I believe that that period of time is very important for all. I would like to say that I do a lot of preparation in the autumn for the winter months but probably I'm not doing as much as I should and that's something that I'm taking away, that's my pledge to try and do a lot more preparation in the autumn. Things like ferments, we're running courses here, the nourish apps or fermentation courses, so learning how to pickle, how to make your own pickles at home or make your own jams and preserves, so that's my pledge to be a lot more involved in activities like this and be more prepared for winter months and prepare my body for winter months but also prepare mentally because we all know in the winter we spend a lot less time outdoors, we probably spend more time doing activities like maybe reading or watching TV and not so much physical activities and that can take its toll on us and then in the spring we have to get back on a more healthy diet so we shouldn't have to do that, we should always maintain that level of healthy eating, mind and have a healthy body. I would urge everyone to find some time in their very busy schedule whether it's summer, winter, autumn or spring. Do find some time in your very busy schedule to look after yourself. No one's going to look after you if you don't look after yourself and you're not going to be able to look after others if you're not looking after yourself well. So in the autumn maybe find something that you really take pleasure in whether it's having a nice workout or reading a nice book or meeting with a friend or having a conversation on the phone with one of your siblings or parents but do find that time it does help massively with our mental health and it's very important to always put ourselves first and look ourselves. I believe an online community is very important so we need to try and find that community that is right for us and if we can't go out there to meet in person with our friends or family members, finding friends online is just as important. Reaching out to support someone or reaching out when we need support. These online platforms are very important and they can maintain our well-being and our mental illness to that level that it should be maintained throughout the year. you