Self Care Wholeheartedly
Self-care is about soothing the soul and strengthening your mind, body and spirit. It’s about making sure that your basic needs are met- emotionally, spiritually, physically and nutritionally. Sounds easy enough, but looking after your most basic needs can seem impossible at times. Making our way through this event that we can life can be tough, the soul can become weary. Remember that to listen to and replenish yourself along the way.
When you take time out for yourself, really take time for yourself. You will not reap any benefits when you take a break while you are not truly present or committed to your time. Turn your phone and other technology off and redirect your mind when it wanders to other things. Remove thoughts of what you should be doing because what you should be doing is taking care of yourself. When it’s time for YOUR self-care, that might mean saying no to others, especially to people that you love. Always doing for others and not yourself can leave you feeling depleted and resentful. So set clear and consistent boundaries.
You’re constantly bombarded with demands from work, family, friends, and everything else in-between. We all feel that pulling and tugging when its time to fully engage in self-care…But it’s so important to create that space and allow yourself time to be with and learn about you. When you can allow that space and stay in the moment, you will become the most authentic version of yourself.
Where to start?
Unplug- Allowing ourselves to become emerged in the constant connection of the world through the news, social media, computer, phones and tv can lead to a disconnection from ourselves. Try disconnecting with the external, to reconnect with your internal. Silence notifications on your phone, or turn it on airplane mood.
Comfort Zone- When you began to reconnect, you will disturb your current comfort zone and that’s ok. The goal is to rid yourself of old ideas that you will longer need moving forward…old patterns of fear, stress, worry or other diseased habits that no longer serve you.
Schedule It- Add self-care to your calendar. Schedule a daily ritual or even a monthly one. Something big or small that feels nurturing and feeds your soul. It should not feel like a chore, obligation or something to check off of your to-do list. The key here is having that ritual be something that you enjoy.
Reflect- What about the feeling behind that feeling? Reflecting upon why you feel or what triggers that feeling and being honest with yourself about it, is a valuable part of basic self-care because it’s about listening. Listening to our basic emotional needs. On the surface, we might feel fine or maybe a little irritable. But we might be covering up the fact that we desperately need a hug or completely stressed out.
In creating time for self-care, be gentle with yourself. Saying “no” to something or a family member does not mean that you are abandoning your family, it means that you are listening to and taking care of your own needs. You are not skating out on responsibilities, you are focusing on the responsibility that you have to yourself. If someone in your life takes issue with the newfound you just politely remind them that by taking care of yourself, the better equipped you are to take care of them.
Be Well!
Until Next Time!
