Things haven’t been well for me lately. I’ve had to reel myself in a bit and look after my mental health and well being. Starting to reevaluate things in my life and start finding more joy in a world that seems to convey quite the opposite.

What do you do to destress? One of the things I do is bake. For those who’ve read, He Was A Boy Who Smiled, at a young age I was introduced to the joys of baking. Though I never got to get my hands on the famous Boyer Cookbook because it was only being handed down to the females of the family, I still was able to get my hands on some recipes. I’ve also invented a few simple ones not necessarily to make the greatest thing on this planet, but recipes that help me calm my anxiety.

I thought I’d share such a recipe with you and tell you the process I use to help bring down my anxiety and keep my hands busy being productive instead of damaging.

Stress Cookies:

Mix ingredients in order they are listed.
1 cup of sugar (pour it in slowly with deep breathes in through the nose out through the mouth)
1 egg (think of someone or something that upsets you or frustrates you as you crack the shell)
16 tablespoons of softened butter (breath in through nose as you scoop it up and out through the mouth as you put it into bowl)
1/4 cup of golden syrup (let it drip slowly focusing on the texture and let thoughts rest)
1.5 tsp of baking soda (let’s just drop this one in with flick of the wrist and a smile)
1 tsp of ginger (sprinkle this one in with a giggle)
1 tsp cinnamon (think of someone who spices up your life, even if it’s yourself)
2 cups of flour (Flour is fun. Show this cookie dough you can be fun!) 

Shape into balls to your liking (Use an ice cream scoop. This is surprisingly relaxing to do for me and controls the size of the cookie. I scoop slowly and take my time shaping.)

Bake at 180C (350F) for 10-15 min. Enjoy the accomplishment, have others enjoy it too, down their gob or enjoy it yourself.

Turn the things you enjoy into ways to self care.

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