What is Self-Care and How to Practice It
17.03.2022
Practising self-care is not simply having “me time” or reading a book when you have an hour to spare. Self-care means deliberately maintaining habits in order to take care of our mental, emotional and physical health. It’s a very simple process but it is very often overlooked. Moreover, it’s the key to keeping up healthy relationships with the people around us. In this post I will humbly try to introduce you to the different types of self-care and tell you the basics of how to practise them.
Physical Self-Care
Physical self-care is the most basic type of self-care. It mainly deals with your physical health and appearance. Make sure you do the following “body maintenance” on a daily, weekly and monthly basis: brush your teeth, take a shower or a bath; drink at least 8 glasses of water a day, maintain a healthy nutritious diet, and last but not least get a good night’s sleep each night. On top of these, change your clothes every day (even if you don’t leave the house!), and every 30-40 days a visit to the barber or hairdresser should be on your to-do list. Don’t forget to do some form of exercise every day, and daily meditation is an increasingly popular way to maintain your physical wellbeing as well.
Intellectual Self-Care
This one is all about your brain. It can be anything, from reading a book or watching documentaries, to going on a Wikipedia expedition to fulfil your thirst for knowledge. Giving your brain new things to think about and mull over can maintain your sharpness and gives your brain the regular exercise it craves.
Financial Self-Care
According to many studies, financial worries can severely affect us emotionally, causing stress, anxiety and sometimes leading to depression through negative thought spirals. To ease the financial pressure on yourself, you should try to keep track of your monthly income and expenditure. There are many financial apps which can help, or you can stay old-school and simply write down everything money-related in a notebook. You could also consider getting some professional help from a financial expert. I’m not talking about trying to make more money or changing the reality in front of you, simply to adjust your outlook and approach to money issues. A good relationship with money manifests differently for everyone, but keeping a healthy relationship with your finances is an important step in looking after yourself.
Emotional Self-Care
Now, I want you to take a pause from reading this article and think about all the activities make you feel emotionally fulfilled. This might be anything from donating your money or time to help people in need, to cleaning your house until it’s spotless, to sitting all day on your couch doing absolutely nothing but reading your favorite author’s books.
Social Self-Care
Social interactions with the people around us help us feel loved, cared for, and fulfilled. Saying yes or no at the right times, setting healthy boundaries and keeping healthy relationships are the essential concepts in social self-care.
Never forget that self-care is not a selfish act. If you don’t look after yourself, you can’t look after your loved ones. Set yourself up with a self-care schedule and try to turn it into a habit. Share your thoughts and comments with us below and follow us on social media.