This Is Why Self-Care Is Essential To Your Health and Happiness
We all know that self-care is essential for our overall health and happiness, but sometimes it's hard to make time for it. Between work, family, and social obligations, it seems like there's never enough hours in the day to do everything we want. But the truth is, if we don't take care of ourselves first, we won't be able to take care of anyone else. That's why I'm here today to tell you why self-care is so important – and why you should make it a priority in your life. Trust me, your health and happiness will thank you!
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Does the idea of self-care sound frivolous and shallow?
If you're struggling with caring for yourself, you're not alone. I never used to take the time for self-care.
I continuously had more important things to do. For years, my emotional and physical well-being suffered. Even the most basic self-care routines we often ignore. I often skipped multiple meals to get more work done, never drank enough water, did nothing to manage my emotional and mental well-being, and hardly had the energy to work out or incorporate movement in my day-to-day. I was on the go-go-go, fueled by toxic hustle culture and neglecting a good and healthy routine for a little TLC.
It's taken me a lot of work to get to where I am and understand how self-care is essential for your health and happiness. Though I still slip up sometimes, it's easier to jump back into a routine. Over the years, I've learned a lot about self-care, why self-care is important to your mental health and happiness, and if you're wondering how to start self-care and a self-care routine for yourself, I'd love to share what I've learned with you.
If you're tired of feeling run down, moody, unfocused, and overwhelmed, it might be time to take a good look at your daily routine. Most of us tend to push ourselves beyond our limits.
We seem to exhaust ourselves, commit too much, and leave little to no time for our self-care between work, family, and friends. Many of us don't realize the physical and mental harm from a lack of self-care. From finding simple pleasures to the simple task of taking a brain break, self-care is essential to our mental health.
What is self-care, and why is it important to stay good and healthy?
Self-care simply refers to taking measures to care for yourself to help promote physical and mental well-being. Doing so allows you to perform better, think more clearly, and care for others efficiently. Self-care is rejuvenating and generally involves doing something enjoyable for yourself, and it resets your body and mind, allowing you to better handle stressors you may encounter.
Investing in yourself through self-care practices gives your mind and body a chance to slow down, unwind, and recover. Even the smallest self-care gestures can positively influence all health and wellness.
Implementing Self-Care Routine Practices Can Benefit Your:
Mood
Sleep patterns
Energy level
Work performance
Hold Yourself Accountable To Practice Self-Care
Self-care also includes being accountable for your health and wellness. Monitor your progress by keeping a journal and checking in with yourself regularly, tracking positive and negative changes, and evaluating areas you may need to make adjustments. It does require honest self-evaluation, which can be tough to implement. Remember, accountability can keep you on track and help you determine which self-care ideas bring you the most joy and balance in your life. Keeping a gratitude journal and checking in with yourself enables you to focus on the good of the day and is a great self-care practice for your emotional well-being.
Why Is Self-Care Important To Your Overall Health And Wellness?
When you commit to caring for yourself, you begin to support your overall physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing. Research also suggests implementing self-care can help promote lifelong, beneficial health outcomes.
Benefits of implementing an enjoyable self-care routine include:
Booting your immune system support
Lowering anxiety levels and improving stress management skills
Increasing productivity
Fostering resilience
Improving self-esteem
How to create a self-care routine
While it may seem impossible to find time in your busy schedule to fit anything else in, it is well worth your physical and mental health to try. There's no rule regarding your self-care routine or how long you must implement it. The ideal self-care routine should make you feel happy and feel good. This could be ten minutes of your time to enjoy a hot cup of tea while you unwind on the couch. It could be a hot bath twice a week. Or perhaps you have a book you've meant to read but never find the time to start.
What is a good self-care routine?
A good self-care routine is one that fits your lifestyle. What might work great for one person might not be the best for you. Don't add more overwhelm to yourself by forcing self-care time. Start small, be realistic, but most of all, enjoy yourself.
Choose a simple activity you're interested in and carve out a small amount of time in your daily or weekly routine. Start by creating a list of hobbies, interests, or relaxing ideas. Next, begin by scheduling time for one easy idea on your list for this week.
Need a few more ideas to get your ideas flowing?
Perhaps self-care for you starts with the very basics and builds on to that after it becomes comfortable. Here are some basic self-care routine examples:
Eating three meals a day
Drinking enough water
Brushing your teeth twice a day & flossing
Doing some type of daily movement for the least 30-minutes a day
Once you've incorporated the basic self-care activities, you can build on that with self-care activities, like:
Crafting
Exercise class, instead of in person or from home
Listening to an audiobook or podcast
Going to get a manicure or pedicure
Buying yourself fresh flowers
To help you, we've put together a self-care routine menu. You can download it for free!
Ready to stay good and healthy?
It's time to put your health and wellness first. By implementing self-care into your busy lifestyle, you can begin to live your best good, and healthy life.
Being a hard worker is both a blessing and a curse. I know the feeling of trying to check one more thing off the never-ending to-do list while in bed at 1 am. A self-care checklist can also feel that way! If you use any of these checklists, use them as a guide of inspiration. The most important thing to remember is to give yourself love, just like you would give to your mom, lovers, best friend, children, pets. Life is not about the daily achievement of checking things off a list; it is about the bigger picture, and we're all just out here doing our best!
We hope this article has inspired you to prioritize your own self-care. It’s essential for our physical, emotional and mental health and can play a huge role in our happiness. What are some things that work well for you? Do you have a self-care routine? Let us know on Instagram! We love hearing from our readers.
This article was first published Mrch 2022 and updated September 2022
