BAME wellbeing

Here is a quick and easy suggestion on how to feel more connected. Maybe you’re feeling home-sick and want to carry on a tradition? Maybe you’ve found a recipe that you’ve never cooked before? Whatever your reason, cooking can be a great way to help us feel connected to people, places and cultures.

Of course, people of colour can have vastly different experiences and that's not to suggest that people of BAME backgrounds are one homogenised group. It can be helpful, however, to speak to a peer who you feel can relate to your own experiences in some way. Perhaps they have also experienced microaggressions or have felt isolated before? Sometimes it can be nice to have a conversation where the other person inherently understands something which you would normally have to spend time explaining.

It is not uncommon to sometimes feel underrepresented in the spaces that you inhabit. Representation matters because it can help us feel more comfortable, validated and a greater sense of belonging. Maybe it’s a character in a book? A conversation in a podcast? Or face on the screen? Engaging with these activities can be an important part of your wellbeing routine.

It's easy for people within BAME communities to feel that they are bestowed a label of ‘resilience’, from tropes of toughness and strength within Black communities to Asian ‘model minorities’. For many, these labels can affect the way they view themselves and can act as a barrier in accessing mindfulness practices. It's important to remind yourself that everyone is equally deserving of dedicating time solely for themselves.

Mindfulness can mean evaluating your self-talk. Perhaps society or stress has caused you to be unkind to yourself without you even noticing. Mindfulness is our chance to give ourselves unconditional love and address self-sabotaging behaviour.

Many people may think ‘being in the moment’ is a luxury that they don’t have the time for. It's important to remember that there's no right way to practice mindfulness. You can take 10 minutes to go for a walk, or a single minute to simply check in with yourself, your body and your mind.