Living in highly demanding times with focus on kids, career, family, financial security, others' expectations, we tend to start behaving like a superwoman/superman. As we juggle through, our well being is put at stake leading to emotional, physical and mental exhaustion. It is during these hard times that self-care comes in handy and makes us realize the importance of it. Unfortunately, self-care is a highly misunderstood and underrated concept. It is considered a selfish activity of pampering self that requires both time and money. It is also considered a sign of a weak mind and body, hence people tend to shy away from it until they are left with no options.
It's time now to clear some of the myths around the concept and accept it and give it the due respect it deserves. It is not a FAD! It requires a few simple activities to be performed every day which are neither time consuming or expensive requiring any special resources.
A simple self-care audit every morning will help you tune in to your inner self and identify the red flags before it is too late. Some questions to be asked every morning are:-
- Do I feel motivated and upbeat about my life in general?
- Do I feel good and energized after waking up every morning?
- Am I interested in things are people around me?
- Do I feel secure in my work and my relationships?
- Am I eating a balanced diet to provide proper nourishment to my body?
If the answer is a 'No' to any of the above questions, it's time for Self Care! Dig deeper into these questions and identify the pain points. An unhealthy mind and body cannot provide good care to people around you, as you can only give out what you have inside you!
Once the red flags are identified, it is time to develop a self-care plan. Simple things to fall into your physical self-care can include some light exercise(indoor or outdoor), eating healthy and nourishing food, 10 minutes of deep breathing, identifying your Circadian clock and arranging the daily tasks accordingly, saying 'no' to extra work when the body revolts.
For mental well being you can include moving away from toxic people and situations, allowing yourself to cry when you are overwhelmed, using positive vocabulary and affirmations and show compassion towards self.
Your spiritual self-care plan can have writing a gratitude journal, contributing to a noble cause, doing random acts of kindness, showing compassion to others.
These are just a few indicative activities. You can draw your plan with things that resonate with you. They may be small simple things to include in your daily life but ' a stitch in time will save nine'!!
Try it, it's worth it!
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