We all know the term "self-care," but do we know what it really means? No, it's not just taking a bath, getting your nails done, or retail therapy.
Self-care is something we deliberately do to take care of our spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical health.
This is a time to take care of yourself, especially for those who live busy and stressful lives. We get so busy in our lives that we don't take the time to take care of ourselves. Self-care isn't something you do one time or here and there, these are habits that you do regularly. Self-care means getting to know yourself better. Things you do for self-care should help you gain or maintain overall well-being.
1. Spiritual self-care
For those who don't practice faith or religion, you can still practice spiritual self-care.
If you do practice faith, this is a time to spend praying or meditating. If you don't practice faith, this can mean going on a long walk. Spiritually isn't only faith but it's the meaning of life. Spirituality can help relieve stress in other aspects like emotional distress. Personally, I have just recently started writing in a gratitude journal to coincide with my faith for prayer.
2. Mental self-care
Mental self-care is most important to me because I suffer from depression and anxiety.
For me, self-care is taking my pills daily to keep my mental illnesses under control. We also have to learn to stop the negative self-talk that most of us struggle with whether it is mentally or physically. We have to address the emotions we mentally carry to help our emotional and physical self-care.
As a college student, I have used alcohol to block my mental suffering. No, I'm not an alcoholic but I've found myself doing this more often than not. For those who drink a glass of wine, don't make it a habit. Using alcohol for self-care can hurt us more than help us because of its a depressant.
3. Emotional self-care
Emotional self-care is highly important to those who are experiencing grief or stress. This means taking the time you need to grieve or by journaling. Our emotions deeply impact other aspects of our lives so taking the time to understand our emotions and taking the time to heal. For those who have depression like myself, emotional self-care can help to relieve some of what is paralyzing your feelings.
4. Physical self-care
We are a nation struggling with an opioid epidemic, we need to address the sources instead of just taking other actions.
Instead of going to the doctors for prescriptions, we should be doing things to care for ourselves physically. This means taking care of our body. We can do this by monitoring our calorie intake, drinking lots of water, getting enough sleep, and exercising regularly. These small things can change our bodies!
Take time to take care of yourself, it isn't selfish! Self-care has helped me boost my confidence and understand my self-worth!
