The world is moving fast – and you try your best to keep up. You know you need to implement self-care so you don’t burn out. So after a long, stressful day, you wind-down with a glass of wine or take a long bath until your toes prune. It’s relaxing and therapeutic in the moment… Then the next day, you’re anxious and stressed out, counting down the minutes until you can get home and commence your wind-down ritual.
The routine doesn’t work because that’s not genuine self-care. You need more.
You need the type of self-care that benefits your day-to-day. Self-care that…
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Promotes a positive mindset…
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Cultivates work-life balance…
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Prevents parental burnout…
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Helps you reach your work goals…
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Doesn’t require an hour-long bath…
That’s what true self-care is all about. Today I’m sharing what this type of self-care looks like, and how you can implement it in your busy life.
What Actually Is Self-Care?
The past couple of years have been incredibly challenging for many people – making self-care a popular topic. Self-care is a multifaceted process of protecting your physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Ultimately, self-care is the practice of managing your happiness and well-being in a time of stress. You have to identify your limits and ensure you’re keeping a healthy balance by not crossing those limits and causing burnout.
When was the last time you were able to relax for a day without the little voice in your head shaming you?
Self-care and shame seem to go hand-in-hand. It’s a common misconception that self-care is equivalent to being selfish or self-indulgent. That’s wrong. You can still care for others, complete your daily to-do list and be mindful of your own needs – it’s all in the balance. By taking care of yourself, you can better meet the needs of those around you. So if anything, self-care is actually selfless!
Why Is Self-Care So Important?
Have you noticed how life can get so busy so quickly? Before you know it your schedule is brimming with things to do, work demands, house chores, and meals to prep. You also have to find time to solve relationship conflicts, be there for friends and family, and visit the gym. The list goes on! Add children to the mix, and suddenly there aren’t enough hours in the day to get things done. 😖
Does this sound like you? I’ve been there too! Even the best of us can become burnt out before we know it.
Self-care is all about managing life’s stressors.
“Stressors” are situations where you feel threatened. This happens when it seems like you don’t have enough resources to address the challenge you’re facing.1 This causes your body to enter fight-or-flight mode.
Your life circumstances, available resources, personality, and a handful of other factors make your stressors unique to you. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to remove all stressful situations from your life, which is why self-care is crucial to your health. But, self-care isn’t just taking a bubble bath to rinse your worries away – it’s a combination of various aspects of your life.
What Are the Different Types of Self-Care?
Self-care is more than simply finding a way to relax in the moment. Genuine self-care goes beyond that to cultivate resilience so that when life’s stressors come, you’re able to cope. It’s essential to create boundaries and find a balance in each of these categories to find relief from stressors. So, here are the five main types of self-care. 🧘♀️
Mental Self-Care
Your thoughts impact your overall mindset and outlook on life. If your mind is filled with negative thoughts, your psychological well-being will be unprotected from your daily stressors. Mental self-care requires practicing self-love and compassion to be kinder to yourself. I know we’re our own worst critics, but we’re stopping that today – because you deserve better.
Physical Self-Care
Your mental well-being is connected to your physical well-being. You have to make sure you’re caring for your body if you want it to get up for you every day. With a busy life, you may think physical self-care is nearly impossible, but it’s not. Simply getting up every day, getting a full night’s rest, and drinking lots of water is all part of your physical care. You can do it.
Spiritual Self-Care
Caring for your spirit is all about cultivating a profound sense of meaning. Fostering a connection with yourself allows you to appreciate yourself, life, and those around you even more. Rapid Transformational Therapy has proven to help people struggling with emotional, physical, or psychological problems. In my practice, I help busy professionals find freedom from emotional issues, among other things, to connect with themselves on a deeper level.
Emotional Self-Care
In today’s fast-paced society, you may feel like there isn’t enough time to deal with your emotions – especially when they’re uncomfortable. Sometimes emotions like fear, anxiety, anger, and sadness can get the best of us. Emotional self-care involves breaking through your self-consciousness and addressing your emotional needs head-on.
To maintain a healthy emotional state, you have to take the time to understand what you feel and why. The good news about this step? You don’t have to do it alone. Ask for help if you need it. You can seek help from a Mindset Coach, or in my case, a Rapid Transformational Therapist, Hypnotherapist, and Mindset Coach all rolled into one. Because you deserve happiness and self-love.
Social Self-Care
As humans, we need to socialize and form connections. But often, that can feel like a challenge when you’re too busy working, taking care of children, running the house, and the list goes on. When you don’t practice social self-care you may unintentionally neglect friendships. Or, on the other end of the spectrum, you may find yourself over-involved in a friend’s well-being while neglecting yourself.
The key to maintaining healthy social self-care is learning how much time you devote to nurturing your friendships. Once you learn that, honor it and set boundaries. Ensure you and your friends respect the boundaries to support your social self-care.
All of these facets connect to create self-care as a whole. You may need to focus on one aspect of self-care more than the others. If you notice you’re doing well in certain areas, continue blossoming in those areas – I’m proud of you – and concentrate on the fields that need improvement.
Remember, it’s a complex journey but the most fulfilling one. Don’t hesitate to ask for help from friends and family. Often, friends and family may not know the level of distress you’re experiencing until you ask them for help. They’re your support system – let them support you when you need it.
I’m also here for you if you need a guide. I’ve been there before and want to understand you on a deeper level. Here are some of my favorite tips on starting your journey with self-care routines proven to work.
Practicing Self-Care Routines
There are many ways to begin your journey toward complete self-care. This is so important because when you invest in your own self-care you’re investing in your health and longevity. By improving your self-care, you’ll decrease your chances of developing a chronic illness. Stress impairs your body’s immune system in numerous ways, which can cause inflammation, among other illnesses.2
There are no wrong ways to exercise self-care, but many different options exist. The techniques that work for you depend on your lifestyle and what suits you best.
Here are some general techniques that have worked for many people, including myself and my clients.
Anxiety can rear its ugly head at any moment. Your chest begins to tighten, you find it hard to breathe normally, and you’re in a state of panic. This breathwork method is ideal for dealing with sudden anxiety because it can be done anywhere at any time. Normally, I like people to begin by inhaling for a four-count, holding for the same time, and exhaling an eight-count. Here’s a FREE guide I made to show you precisely how to do this method.
Journaling
While some people are unsure about journaling, it’s actually a beneficial method for lowering stress and negative thoughts. When you’re stressed, it’s difficult to listen to your conscious and figure out what you’re feeling and why.
By journaling in a time of stress, you can clearly pinpoint the emotions you’re feeling. You can also figure out why you’re feeling the way you do. And you may uncover a solution to help you overcome your current emotions. By writing your thoughts down, you’re letting your feelings out, ensuring that by the time you’re done, you’re feeling at least a little bit lighter.
Tapping is a technique proven to reduce stress by tapping your nine key Meridian points. This method works by slowly turning off your amygdala, the part of your brain which provokes your fight-or-flight response when stressed. Don’t worry about trying to find out what the nine points are and how to use this method – I’ve made a FREE video guide to help you.
Create a personalized self-care kit
Include anything that makes you feel secure and relaxed in stressful moments. Make sure this kit is easily accessible anywhere you go. The kit can include:
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Headphones (bonus if they’re noise canceling) so you can listen to soothing music
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Calming essential oils
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Favorite snacks
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Journal and favorite writing utensil
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Water bottle
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Your favorite soft scarf or fuzzy socks
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A pop-it or Rubix cube to help you focus on something other than your stress
This therapy can change your life, and it has for so many of my clients. This is a hybrid form of therapy that uses the science of neuroplasticity to deliver long-term results for those struggling emotionally, physically, and psychologically. RTT replaces your negative behavior patterns and antiquated belief systems with healthy ones so you can overcome harmful obstacles.
Getting enough hours of sleep
No matter what age you are, sleep is essential to your health. For the average adult between 18 and 60, seven hours or more a night is required.3 Are you sleeping that much?
Insufficient sleep has been linked to many chronic diseases and conditions such as diabetes, obesity, depression, and cardiovascular disease.4 Insufficient sleep increases irritability, making you more susceptible to stress. It’s essential to put yourself first and give yourself the rest your mind and body deserve.
There are other methods, such as meditation, going for a walk, spending time with friends, reading a book, and many more. Find the methods that work best for you. If you’re unsure which method will work for you, don’t worry – that’s normal, too. Many of my clients came to me unsure of how to cultivate self-care habits that work for them. Together we can create a holistic self-care plan that boasts real-life results.
It’s Time to Start Your Journey
It becomes easy to let go of your self-care routines when you’re under stress and feeling anxious by a hefty to-do list and obstacles in your life. I’ve been there before – it’s no fun at all. Self-care is more than massages, bubble baths, and shopping days – it’s a culmination of all aspects of your life.
Beginning this journey can be difficult, especially when holding yourself accountable to practice your self-care routines in times of need. My mindset coaching exclusive service provides you with actionable tools to help you identify and overcome daily hurdles in your life. I provide you with lesson plans and a workbook to address your confidence, procrastination, self-doubt, and more.
Because, as a parent and busy professional, I understand what you may be going through right now. There was a time in my life when I hit rock bottom – I found myself facing anxiety and self-sabotaging behaviors. It wasn’t until I did the work and uncovered the root cause of my harmful behaviors and limiting beliefs that I came out on the other side – better than ever! I want to show others that it’s possible to come out of their funk as an improved version of themselves. And now, I genuinely help people just like you get to the lifestyle they deserve.
Book a call with me today to see if we’re a right fit. Then, let’s begin your journey together.
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