ELEVATE MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING MONTH | Week 1 — Physical Well-Being: Strength

By Kyra Hazilla

Attending to our physical well-being is an important aspect of taking care of ourselves. Keeping our bodies strong involves much more than pumping iron at the gym (although if that’s your jam, it has many physical and mental health benefits). We support our physical well-being by drinking enough water, using the restroom when we feel the urge (how many lawyers go the whole day without pause?), getting enough sleep, filling our bodies with nutritious food, and moving as much as we can.

This Wednesday, May 1, join us at 9:00 a.m. for a lively discussion with other members of the legal community on how to get moving. You can bring favorite ideas to share or come to listen and be inspired.

Things to read, watch, and listen to this week

We sit so much in our profession—try a mindfulness posture exercise here:
https://chopra.com/blogs/mind-body-health/4-tips-to-improving-your-posture-with-embodied-mindfulness

For judges, physical well-being can be impacted by literally sitting on the bench. See some strategies here specifically for judicial officers from the National Center for State Courts report on Judicial Wellness:
https://www.ncsc.org/__data/assets/pdf_file/0040/79699/Judicial-Wellness.pdf

Listen to this great podcast from lawyers in Australia about how one lawyer fits in exercise:
https://www.lawyersweekly.com.au/podcast/31859-making-exercise-non-negotiable-in-the-working-week (Discussion begins at the 7:26 mark.)

Things to try

Check out OAAP Atorney Counselor Associate Kirsten Blume’s chair yoga video for a quick break during your day.

The research is clear—social dancing is good not only for our physical health but also has benefits for our mental health that surpass other forms of exercise. See this short video: https://www.cnn.com/videos/health/2023/04/03/social-dancing-cognitive-function-alzheimers-lbb-orig.cnn

Consider trying out one of the drop-in opportunities for social dancing around the state—for a great list of weekly events go here (it looks old but is fairly up to date): http://www.contradancelinks.com/schedule_OR.html

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