Many times I discuss with clients developing a self-care routine. You would be surprised how many people have difficulty with this. When describing themselves or their daily routine, it becomes evident that many are great caretakers but do not know how to take care of themselves.
Often, making time for oneself is so foreign to a person that their health and relationships suffer. A concept that helps people assimilate the importance of self-care is what the flight attendants tell us when sitting on a plane: “When the oxygen mask drops down, put it on yourself first and then help your child.”
So what does self-care look like? It is different for everyone but, a basic paradigm I follow is attending to mind, body, and spirit. When a person makes time to address these three areas of life consistently, results follow. We all know what activities fall within these categories, so I’ll skip the details, but once the concept of attending to yourself becomes clear, it is easy to figure out what you need to do for yourself.
I would like to emphasize failure to take care of ourselves, not only creates poor physical and mental health but also breeds resentment. Often, people wonder why they are not feeling well. They feel helpless. Others wonder why some do not see or know they need help. This goes back to the basic premise of not depending on others for things that only we can take care of. Finally, when we live our lives taking responsibility for our own self-care we are setting an example for our children and others around us.
QUOTE FOR THE WEEK
Healing happens in different ways. – Mirta Pont
