Presented by BetterHelp.
It’s easy to feel exhausted between work and taking care of kids and people in your life. Sometimes, things can go beyond exhaustion to feeling completely depleted – to the point where you may even be unable to continue your daily schedule. When you feel like you have no more gas left in the tank, self-care is what you can do to fill your tank back up. It’s replenishing for your mind, body, and soul to engage in self-care activities.
Who couldn’t use a little more self-care these days? Let’s take a look now at what self-care is, ways to engage in self-care, and how online therapy or traditional therapy can be a valuable part of your routine.
What Is Self-Care?
When you leave the gym knowing you did something to make yourself feel healthier and stronger, that’s self-care. According to the National Institute for Mental Health, self-care offers a multitude of benefits. Self-care can help you improve energy levels, better manage stress, and even helps decrease the risks associated with developing certain illnesses.
As parents and caregivers, it can be easy to feel like you give everything to the people around you. But you can only do that when you have enough gas in the tank, so let’s take a look at some of the forms of self-care you can use to feel more revitalized.
What Are Some Kinds Of Self-Care?
Self-care can take many forms and be directed to replenishing your mind, body, or soul. For some people, certain parts of their life need more replenishment than other parts, and it’s important to examine where we most feel depleted. Once we take the time to acknowledge where we could use more support, we can start to bring more self-care to that area of our life.
The practice of self-care is often divided into the Seven Pillars of Self-Care: mental, spiritual, physical, emotional, environmental, social, and recreational. But the forms self-care can take are almost limitless. For some, it can mean getting more exercise. Or it could be as simple as getting a large water bottle to better insure your daily hydration intake. One small thing can be enough to make your day and your life better.
Ways To Add Self-Care To Your Life
Self-care doesn’t have to be time consuming or expensive. For some, finding a free meditation app with reminders to take a one-minute break a few times a day provides welcome refreshment to the grind of daily living. Self-care has many paths, give yourself the gift of exploring new roads and possibilities. Here are a few to consider:
Go on daily walks and get regular exercise
Get a special water bottle to track your hydration
Eat healthier meals
Prioritize healthy sleep routines
Make practicing gratitude a daily habit
Journal your goals and dreams
Take social media or television breaks
Go to coffee with a friend
Take a minute to meditate and focus on breathing
Clear up a cluttered drawer or closet
Seek support with a therapist
How Is Therapy Part of Self-Care?
Self-care is about taking steps to promote your overall health and mental health. Sometimes, therapy itself is part of your self-care routine. Fortunately, there are more options for seeking the support of a therapist today than ever before. With the benefit of technology, it’s possible to meet with a therapist online conveniently from the comfort of your own home. So, even if you thought traditional therapy wasn’t an option with your schedule, you may be able to work with someone online.
Best of all, you don’t need to be suffering from a mental illness to seek the support of a therapist. You may just want to work on some things that you know could be improved, like your relationships or work life. A therapist can help you work on current issues you’re facing and help you achieve future goals.
Takeaway
When a battery gets drained, you plug it in to recharge. There’s no reason to feel like self-care is an extra treat you only get when everything else is checked off your list. Some days, self-care is a necessity not an indulgence. There can be challenging parts of your life that need more attention, and the best thing you can do is ask for help. Take the steps you need to take to bring more self-care in your life. A small step today can lead to big improvements in your life tomorrow.
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