You may have heard a lot about the importance of self-care lately, especially related to COVID-19 and the challenges of navigating all that comes with it. There is a lot of information out there explaining self care and its importance in our lives. Almost too much information, which can feel overwhelming.
Here is self care simply explained and how to start:
What is self care?
Self care is the practice of taking action to preserve or improve one's own health. Moreover, incorporating healthy practices to ensure an overall sense of emotional and physical well-being. To take care of yourself is to love yourself.
Back to basics!
Taking care of your basic life needs comes first. Ask yourself the following questions: Have I showered today? Am I wearing clean clothes? Am I hydrated? Did I get enough sleep? Have I eaten something healthy in the past 3 hours? Have I gone outside today? Have I cuddled something living today?
You are already on your way!
Just beginning to think about self care and it’s importance means you are already taking the first step to better practices. Once you have evaluated your self care strengths and challenges you can begin to beef it up!
One step further!
Once your basic needs have been met, take it one step further. Evaluate what you already do well and take a moment to acknowledge what you could do to improve your self care. Google some fun, simple, and easy ways to carve out more “me time” into your day. This may be a quiet cup of tea in the morning, a mid-day 5 minute meditation, or a warm, calming bubble bath at night.
Start by creating a routine.
Busy, busy, busy! We are all so busy and it is so easy to forget to take care of ourselves. Creating a daily routine that incorporates self care practices will help develop a long lasting habit.
Final thought:
You are worth it! Taking time out of our lives to ensure that we are taking care of ourselves will have a long- lasting, positive impact on our mental and physical health. Everyone deserves to be taken care of and loved. You deserve this, too! If you believe you or a loved one could benefit from professional support, please contact Compass Social Skills and Counseling, LLC at 774-847-9340 or Info@SocialCompassCounseling.com.