Do you practice self care? Do you even know what it really means?

It's often just an excuse for businesses to promote their own products or services and usually targeting women..

But not here, I'm learning just as you possibly are, and that it's equally important for men.

It only recently sunk in with me what it actually means.

Being a baby boomer, I thought it was a fad for young people.

In my day, self care equated to going for a drink after any kind of hard day. (I am of Irish descent and Australian origin!)

However, as a result of watching a 20 something YouTuber manage her insanely busy life, I finally realized how important self care is.

It's a sound and enjoyable survival tool/practice.

In our busy lives - between work, family and social obligations it’s easy to forget to check in with ourselves or perhaps it’s just not something that you’ve ever even considered doing?

Our world is now recognizing the power of being mentally healthy, or not, and how that impacts the quality of our lives, including our physical health.

Let’s dive into why self-care matters and some fun ways to make it part of your everyday life!

 

Why Self-Care Matters

Self-care isn’t just a trendy term; it’s essential for your overall well-being. Here’s why you should embrace it:

• Stress Relief: Taking time for yourself can help melt away stress and leave you feeling more relaxed. Stress is a feeling that manifests itself physically in the well being of our bodies. Your heart, for one, suffers when we are under constant stress. The occasional stress situation is not bad but day in day out stress can be a killer as well as an eroder of your body's health.

• Better Mental Health: Regular self-care can help lift your mood. Your mood is the lens through which you will approach everything in your life. If you can lift your mood then things will improve and you will be able to keep anxiety at bay, anxiety being another form of stress, but one that erodes your mindset.

  
  
  
  

• Boosted Productivity: When you feel good, you’re more focused and ready and able to tackle whatever comes your way. That may include work load, relationship issues and/or hectic schedules.

• Stronger Connections: When you care for yourself, you’re in a better place to be balanced and able to support your friends and family.

Easy Ways to Make Self-Care Happen

Want to start incorporating self-care into your life?

Here are some simple tips:

1. Create a Routine: Set aside time each day or week just for you and stick to it. Treat it as a high priority time commitment, because it is!

   In that blocked out time, plan to do something that you love doing that doesn't involve someone else. This is for your self. Whether it’s a morning coffee ritual or an evening unwind session, make it a habit! You can, and should, allocate other time for your relationships.

2. Get Your Beauty Sleep: Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep each night. Your body will thank you for it! I know, I know, this is easier said than done, but when we apply ourselves to a task, it's amazing what we can achieve. Just start trying by doing those things you know will help, a little each week (might write a post about this later cause it's something I sure struggle with too).

   
   

   

   
   

3. Move Your Body: Find an activity that gets you moving—dance, yoga, or even a brisk walk. It doesn’t have to be intense; just get that blood pumping! Don't think of it as exercise, think of it as fun. To me that looks like a hike in the mountains with a friend (safety in numbers. I always get paranoid about being stalked by a mountain lion).

4. Practice Mindfulness: Mindfulness is all about being present and fully engaged in the moment, without judgment. It involves paying attention to your thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and the environment around you. This practice encourages a gentle awareness of what’s happening right now, rather than getting caught up in worries about the past or future. Try out meditation or some deep breathing exercises. These can really help clear your mind and keep you grounded and put things in perspective.

5. Indulge in Pampering: Treat yourself! Whether it’s a decadent hot chocolate and croissant, a cozy bath or a professional massage, do something physical that makes you feel pampered.

6. Get Outside: Spend some time in nature! Go fishing, go hiking, take your meditation outdoors, take up gardening. Just being outside in nature can do wonders for your mood.

Fun Self-Care Activities to Try

Here are some enjoyable activities that can boost your self-care game:

• Get Creative: Dive into hobbies where you are creating something. Being creative literally feeds your soul. If you think you can't do something, take a class, like painting, writing, or crafting. It’s a great way to express yourself and unwind and you may just find a new passion.

• Read for Fun: Read that book you’ve been meaning to read or listen to an audiobook while you relax.

• Cook Something Delicious: Try out new recipes that are both tasty and healthy -cooking can be super therapeutic! Making bread is relatively easy, and kneading dough is so very 'therapeutic'. I've taken up making sour dough bread for fun and health.

• Take a Digital Break: Unplug from screens for a bit. It’s refreshing and helps you reconnect with the world around you. Hmmm, this is a tough one, but just do it. An hour a day won't kill us, will it?

• Journal It Out: Write down your thoughts or feelings in a journal. It’s a great way to process everything going on in your life. Or on scraps of paper and throw them away. A bit like burning Zozobra, get those negative feelings out of you so you can get on with all the positive things in your life. You can also express happy thoughts and feelings and gratitude, write whatever you feel moved to write, it will be the right thing.

Wrap-Up

Remember, self-care isn’t just an indulgence; it’s something we all NEED!

By making it a conscious decision for self care to be a part of your routine, you’ll feel happier, healthier and more balanced.

And the best part?

When you take care of yourself, you’re in a much better position to support those around you.

Like they say on airplanes, put the oxygen mask on yourself first (self care), then choose who you will help.

Make self-care a priority.

You not only deserve it, you probably need it - we all do!