You take care of your work, your schooling and maybe even some close friends or family. But do you take care of yourself?

In the busyness of our culture, it can be easy to let our personal lives and well-being fall by the wayside. When I’m at my busiest, the first thing I tend to let go of is self-care. I feel more committed to all of my outside activities than I do to myself, and friends have told me they feel the same way. That is not at all how it should be.

Our first commitment in life should be taking care of ourselves: eating right, getting enough sleep, taking care of our bodies and just relaxing. However, I will also argue that self-care goes beyond that. Self-care also involves making sure you have fun in your life. It means that sometimes you do things just because they will bring you pleasure.

This is why you should take yourself a date.

You are the person in your life who truly knows what will bring you the most pleasure and excitement. You can go on your dream date without any worry that your date won’t like your choices because you will be your date.

The date I recently took myself on was to the Chrysler Museum of Art, where I took the time to absorb several of my favorite glass pieces and to see the new exhibit. This time, the exhibit was called “Water,” and it was an amazing series of photos by Edward Burtynsky. The innovative perspectives on the appearances of water throughout the world brought me joy and a feeling of gratitude.

There is an unexpected freedom in taking yourself on a date. You are completely in control, and you get to do what will make you feel good. It can be as fancy or as casual as you like. It can be slow or face-paced as you prefer. It can be long or short depending on what fits in your schedule.

Your self-date may not take you to an art museum, as mine did. You could go to the Cheesecake Factory and order the most decadent slice of cheesecake on the menu. You could go to the bookstore and treat yourself to a new book. You could even go to a local amusement park and ride your favorite rollercoaster nine times in a row. Your date with yourself can be anything you dream up.

Self-care doesn’t mean you have to take yourself on a date every week, or even every month. But if you’re feeling your sanity slipping and you aren’t sure how you’re going to make it to the end of the month, that is the time. Or if you’re lazing around on a Saturday afternoon, trying to think of something to do, that is the time to take yourself on a real date. You know you will take care of all the things you need to do. But first, plan a special time for you.