Self-care is small and mindful changes you make to your routine and choices that help you to be kinder to yourself. It can involve practicing micro-habits that help you to upgrade your lifestyle to the way you want it to be. Alternatively, it can simply be healthier eating choices so you feel more in control of your body and health. Some people simply need to get organized and streamline their lives. Others want to feel more intimacy in their relationships with friends, family, and children.
Finding what works for your outer life starts with you taking care of your inner life. Begin questioning the voices in your head that doubt you or criticize you. Seek out their source and find ways to understand why they exist. Consult a therapist to see if that helps you to overcome any residual childhood trauma that could be causing your anxiety or coloring your relationship with your children.
Treat yourself with love. Indulge yourself in ways that you would want to indulge your loved ones. Eat a sweet treat once in a while and fight the urge to feel guilty. Food is for sustenance and you need it. Treats are necessary as well as they make you happy. Schedule a spa massage session at the end of a hard week and pamper yourself. The work you do is hard even if you enjoy it, even if it’s your dream job and you deserve the opportunity to relax. You will find that a calmer more relaxed you are better at connecting with your spouse and children. Loving yourself helps you to love them better.
Make a list of the self-care activities you would like to try to get started. This is the best way for you to learn what you need to do to live well.
Read or Listen
\Read a book about self-care or listen to a podcast by a lifestyle guru. This can help you to understand the concept and figure out how you want to approach making self-care goals. You could even follow self-care threads on Reddit or find Instagram pages that suggest ideas for relaxation and meditation.
Exercise is Key
Often, when we reach the point of burnout, we have also been neglecting our body as well as our mind. Start doing some exercise every day to help you get back in touch with your body. Take a walk with your family every evening. Turn on some music and dance your way through your chores. Lift weights while watching TV or teach yourself how to do a plank.
As you get stronger, your stamina will improve and you will find that you feel happier after some exertion.
Organize Your Space
A clean and organized space can help you to feel much more in control of your mind and life. Start small by sorting out piles of clothing or stacked up mail. Organize them into the laundry or fold the clean clothes. Put away your bills into a folder and assign the folder a designated space in your office.
Over time, you will find it easier to put things back and stay organized. This will lower the stress you feel in your environment and allow you to deal with feeling overwhelmed. A cluttered space can make you feel out of control and clean space can help you to feel accomplished.
Take a few minutes every day to put something away. Fold a few towels, move the clothes from the dryer to the designated folding space. Buy some laundry hampers and give them to your kids as toy storage so that it will be easier for you to help them put the hampers away at the end of the day.
Turn Ice Cold
A great way to wake yourself up if you are struggling to overcome lethargy in the morning is to blast yourself with some cold water. Take a shower as per usual and just before getting out, turn the water to the cold setting. The shock of the cold water hitting your warmed skin will give you a big burst of energy. It will kick start your circulation and shake you awake immediately. The rush of adrenaline will carry you through the remainder of your bathroom activities or give you the impetus you need to cook breakfast.
Ditch the Caffeine
Caffeine can compound anxious feelings and the crash of energy can leave you without any desire to do activities once you’re done with work. Wean yourself off coffee and consider drinking green tea instead. Green tea can help reduce your risk of heart disease, lower cholesterol levels, and helps add to your daily water intake. Some people find that an apple or a square of bitter chocolate gives them a boost of energy in the early morning without the side effects that come with drinking coffee.
One easy way to help you feel better is to drink more water. Carry a water bottle with you at all times so you can ensure that you are drinking enough. Dry skin, lethargy, and difficulty defecating are all signs that you may not be drinking enough water. Constipation is uncomfortable and can turn serious the longer you remain dehydrated. Feeling dizzy and confused due to low water intake can also lead to low blood pressure.
Avoid becoming dehydrated by always keeping a steady supply of water with you. Getting up to refill your water bottle gives your body some movement away from your desk which can help you to focus and concentrate better at work. It also gives you a reason to interact with colleagues and improve your important work-based relationships. Use dehydrated fruit or fruit pulp to make the water more palatable and easier to drink often. It might sound simple, but self-care often is simple and about consistency.
