Listen on ituneslisten on acast Emma Blackery @emmablackery is an award-winning singer-songwriter and author whose YouTube Channel, Emma Blackery, has nearly 1.5 million subscribers. In this episode we talk about her new book Feel Good 101 (available on Amazon and from Waterstones) and how she wrote it as the handbook for life that she wished she'd had in her teens.
We cover the tricky topics of anxiety and depression and how to make sense of them, what millennials are really like, why they get a hard time and the importance of having a focus and goals in life.
My 'digital detox' in the New Forest, which actually involved more social lurking than actually switching off. I went to Lime Wood Hotel & Spa for a night to try to give myself a break from all things work, social media and, you know, routine. I picked the perfect place because Lime Wood really is a place where you can completely switch off and unwind - they've totally nailed that relaxed, no pressure atmosphere where there's never tension or stress in the air. The afternoon I arrived I went for a 'ramble' on one of their many routes in the woods - you just pick up a map from reception and off you go - and it was incredibly restorative, even the bit where I got a bit lost and panicked.
I also allowed myself a wee spot of indulgence and a Nourish by Bamford spa treatment, which was possibly the best treatment I've ever had in my life. Three hours of massage, a facial and reflexology; coupled with my ramble the day before I felt refreshed and restored for the first time in a long while.
Yes, Lime Wood is a beautiful location, but the moral of this story is that sometimes finding a pocket of time and allowing yourself to switch off, and actually acknowledging you deserve it, can be as restorative as a holiday.