Hey Blume Crew! My name is Dora Kamau, self-care artist, mental health advocate & the heartbeat of Bliss Your Heart. I’ll be taking over Blume’s Instagram each Sunday for Self Care Sunday! My desire for Self Care Sundays is to play the role of a teacher and equip you with some helpful tools for your self-care & self-love toolbox, but also be a student and learn from all of you through your own questions and experiences.
What does it mean to be a self-care artist?
There’s a quote I came across in the beginning stages of Bliss Your Heart that read, “being an artist means forever healing your own wounds at the same time endlessly exposing them”.
My self-care journey from the beginning, middle and where I’m at now has been this beautiful cycle of healing myself & using that healing to hold space for others to heal – which is an art. I also wanted to step out of the expectations or the limitations that come with being a life coach or an entrepreneur. I felt as though an artist has the freedom to be who they are and also a freedom in what they create because it’s their own unique creative expression. For me, my self-care practices came to be by being able to freely express and create what was meant for me and nobody else. Which is how self-care is supposed to be, unique to our being and defined/expressed in ways that only we can truly understand and feel.
Tell us more about Bliss your Heart, what was the inspiration behind it and why is it important to you?
Bliss Your Heart is an in-person and online platform that hold spaces for real & raw conversations. I host workshops and events focusing on self-love, self-care and mental health throughout the year that allows for meaningful connections and discussions to happen. I gave birth to Bliss Your Heart after wanting to make a change in my life and make an impact on others. I had decided to go sober & plant-based and when I made that decision, there was a lot of shame and guilt that I experienced by choosing to change my lifestyle. I felt that I was alone and didn’t really have anyone to talk to about what I was going through because my shame held me captive. But this is why Bliss Your Heart is so important to me, to be able to debunk the myths of shame, guilt and unworthiness that many women experience. The conversations are so important, being able to talk about things that scare us, that worry us, that confuse that and turn those fears into our own personal power. That’s something important that I wish and hope everyone has the opportunity to do in this lifetime.
What do your mornings look like? If they differ from day to day, describe your ideal morning.
My mornings start with me expressing gratitude for waking up & being able to see another day. If I have enough time, I’ll meditate for 27 minutes to a guided meditation on Insight timer and then journal shortly after. Every Sunday night, I like to set an intention for my week, do my meal prep and schedule in 2-3 workout classes. I’m a huge fan of overnight oats so that’s what I eat most days of the week, but if not, you can definitely find me sipping’ on a celery juice or a smoothie in the AM. That’s pretty much my ideal morning as well, carving out time before I face the world to be alone and tap into my needs first, before serving others.
What has influenced your view of self-love or self-care, this can be a person, movie, book, anything!
My boyfriend has definitely influenced my view of self-love and self-care. He’s the epitome of what it means to be completely, selfishly and wholly in love with yourself. He sets the standard when it comes to creating routines, rituals and practices that honour oneself, but yet, he is still able to love me unconditionally and be one the greatest supports in my life.
Also my life experience has influenced the way I view self-love tremendously! I was blessed to experience a lot of disappointment, heartache and pain to truly understand that the greatest love of all is the love that we have for ourselves.
What is one area of self-care that you’re currently working on in your own life?
Right now, I’m working on being more mindful of my relationship with social media. Especially because a lot of my business is online, it’s so easy to get lost in the wonderful world of Instagram for the sake of “work”, but it’s equally important to ensure you’re not losing yourself online. My self-care in regards to mindful social media use is being aware of what my intent is, every time I use an app. For example, if I use Instagram, I try to check myself by asking “what’s the purpose of me being online right now? how much time am I willing to spend on Instagram vs creating IRL relationships and friendships? How much of social media use is influencing me being productive?
What advice would you give someone who’s looking to make self-care and self-love more of a priority in their life?
I would say to start cultivating awareness around where and what you place more attention on, over yourself. If you’re looking to make self-care and self-love more of a priority in your life, start by identifying what you’ve been prioritizing over your own well-being. For example, maybe you’ve been placing your work or a relationship over your well-being. From there create an inventory of those things and create practical tips or practices that can allow you to call that energy and attention back to yourself.
Another way to make self-care and self-love more of a priority in your life is to get clear on your intention, what purpose does self-care play in your life? what areas of your life need more nurturing and watering? why haven’t you been caring for yourself? If you’re able to question why you haven’t been practicing self-love and self-care from a place of compassion & curiosity, that's a beautiful place to start to begin prioritizing yourself & your needs.
For those of you who may not know, Bliss Your Heart is an online and in-person womxn’s platform that creates and hold spaces for meaningful connections & conversations. As a dedicated student of life, the lessons life tossed at me were subjects deeply rooted in self-care, self-love and mental health – which are also the topics of discussion at my workshops & events with Bliss Your Heart. My own story of self-care started from the time I was born up until this very moment. I guess you could say, everything that has transpired in my life equipped & prepared me for moments like these. To be able to educate, inspire and uplift other women on their own personal and unique journey to wellness and wholeness.
