A common misconception that many believe is the fact that self-care is synonymous with being selfish. However, what those people fail to realize is that self-care is much more than that.
What is Self-Care?
The World Health Organization defines self-care as “the ability of individuals, families, and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and to cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a healthcare provider.” So, according to this definition, self-care encompasses everything that is related to maintaining physical and mental health. It is all the steps a person takes in order to manage stressors in their life and to take care of their well-being. It also involves integrating self-compassion into your life in a way that aids in preventing the possibility of a burnout. However, it is also paramount to note that not everything that feels good is considered self-care. Any person may feel the need to resort to unhealthy coping mechanisms such as drugs, alcohol, over-eating, and risk-taking. As is known, these activities are self-destructive and only relieve your stress provisionally. With that being said, unlike unhealthy coping mechanisms, self-care provides the person with long-term benefits for their body, mind, or both.
The Benefits of Self-Care
Some of the long-term benefits that self-care provides us with include:
- Improved resistance to diseases. Self-care activities activate a person’s parasympathetic nervous system, thus allowing the body to go into a revitalizing mode, assisting your immune system to fortify itself.
- Better physical health. Similarly, better self-care often leads to fewer cases of the flu, colds, and upset stomachs. A better immune system and less stress help a person feel much stronger on the inside and on the outside.
- Better productivity. When you start making time for things that matter to you and you start saying “no” to things that over exhaust you, you bring your goals to a sharper focus, which helps you concentrate more on what you are doing.
- Enhanced self-esteem. When you frequently take time out to just be good to yourself and to meet your own needs, you send a positive message to your subconscious. This goes a long way toward discouraging negative self-talk.
- More to give. When you are treating yourself well, you might think that you are being selfish because of all the misconceptions surrounding self-care. However, self-care gives you the resources you need in order to be compassionate to others as well. You cannot give other people compassion if you do not have enough of it for yourself.
Ideas for Self-Care
To get started with a self-care routine, it is usually suggested that you:
- Determine what kind of activity brings you happiness, replenishes your energy, and refurbishes your balance.
- Start small by choosing one specific behavior that you would like to integrate into your daily routine.
- Slowly build up the practice of that behavior throughout the week.
- Reflect on how you feel and how that behavior changed your usual motions.
- When you feel that you have mastered that behavior, gradually add in more practices you want to take part in.
Also, practicing self-care does not have to be something enormous and extraordinary from the get-go. Rather, ease yourself into the journey of self-care. This may include:
- Setting time aside to read a new (or an old favorite) book. Reading has continuously been proven to reduce stress levels, so it is a fascinating way to switch off from your worries and stressors, and rather focus on the new world you’re about to walk into.
- Going for a walk in a place where you can connect with nature such as the beach, around a lake, in a garden, etc. Focus on breathing in the fresh air and being solely in the moment. Take in the colors, smells, sounds, and sights around. You will greatly improve your well-being.
- Make yourself a big pot of tea or anything that you enjoy so that you could spend your morning just resting in bed. You can read a book, magazine, or watch a movie. It is very rare that we start our mornings void of hectic plans for the day so do not over-schedule yourself, and give yourself time to relax.
We need to eradicate the stigma that taking care of ourselves is self-indulgent or selfish because the most significant relationship you can establish is a good relationship with yourself.