Self Care
It’s the word on everyone’s lips at the moment. But what is it?
Self-care has been defined as “providing adequate attention to one’s own physical and psychological wellness” (Beauchamp & Childress, 2001).
Now, there are many sources out there that would have you believe that self-care means long massages and elaborate day spas, or punching your credit card deets in at the checkout page. Buy this…. Its self-care and it will make you feel better. It will make you happy…. For 5 minutes.
The problem is, when you are stressed, tired, overstretched – activities of short-term gratification serve only to deal with your feelings in that moment. In… that…. moment.
Self-care, in reality has a little more depth to it, goes a little further than the surface level stuff it is associated with so often and it is meant to be more of a maintenance and prevention thing, than a damage control thing.
It is mindfully and purposefully engaging in activities that support and maintain physical and mental health, enhance well-being and personal development. They are things you should also invest time in regularly.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with buying a cute new pair of pumps or booking in for a relaxing rubby-rub-rub, and these can absolutely be considered ‘caring for yourself.’ But I encourage you to dig a little deeper than that.
Self-care does not need to cost you a cent, and considering it is something you should plan into your life on a regular basis – this is probably a good thing.
There are so many ways in which we can include self-care into each and every day and these range from physical – such as going for a walk in nature, healthy movement / stretching, good nutrition, and getting restful and adequate sleep – to emotional and psychological – such as practicing mindfulness, social media and digital detoxing, learning a new skill or participating in something that gets your creative juices flowing.
Below are some ideas (in addition to the ones mentioned above) for self-care;
- Saying no! not overstretching yourself or doing things you really don’t feel like doing.
- Nurturing a hobby you love. Dance, painting, reading, playing music.
- Keeping your finances and savings in check – spending sensibly.
- A phone call with a friend / loved one – social self-care.
- Meditation and mindfulness. ***hot item**
- Getting out in nature, a walk at the beach, in the hills or a park.
- Journaling or writing in a gratitude journal.
- Investing in your personal or professional development.
Most of these don’t cost you a dime, and this is by no means an exhaustive list.
I encourage you to spend some time researching or thinking about what other options there are for you, what self-care might mean for you now, and to work at factoring some into your week, REGULARLY.
You want your self-care routine to be something that has an impact and enriches your life, physically, mentally, and spiritually. Sure – every now and then sit on the couch and devour your favourite donut while you binge on a Netflix series, or jump online and splurge a little on some new threads – treat yo’self. But these are ‘sometimes’ things and I’d argue that they are not really ‘self-care’ activities in the real meaning of the word.
Make self-care a priority in your life, take care of you – inside and out. <3
Happy Self Caring my little snowflakes.
Elle x
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