I ran across a post today that I quickly read, posted my comment and moved on. and then I went back to it…
They wanted to know what we think of when we hear “self-care”. For me, that’s an easy one…at least it is now. I grew up feeling like it was my job to be a people pleaser, boat steadier, and peace keeper (most of you know this already), so self-care wasn’t on my radar at all.
And it’s funny, when I thought about self-care, I figured an evening out with friends after a tough week would suffice. And for some folks, maybe that would be enough. Buy a new outfit or get your nails done, and you feel wonderful for a few days…right?
Nope. I’ve discovered that people like me (sorta anyway, because there is only 1 of me)…we need lots of self-care built into our lives in order to feel like ourselves for more than just an evening or a weekend. and so I say, self-care is an attitude, a disposition, a way of living.
For me, this means (almost) daily exercise, a weekly scheduled day of rest, dedicated friend time, and saying a guilt-free NO when I need to. I had to give myself permission to put my own needs first.
To me, self-care used to be a list of special things to do when I felt stressed. Now, self-care has become a list of things to keep me feeling mentally healthy, happy and capable of coping with stress that may arise, a tool of resilience that I never knew I needed.
My hope is that you will think about your own self-care… i actually created a self-care action plan for a workshop awhile back. If you’re interested, send me an email and I’d be happy to share it with you.
life begins on the beach 