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Why Self-Care Isn’t Selfish
Lets talk bout self-care, self-love, and 10 brilliant things you can do to increase then in your life. As a mother of two, and a yoga teacher who’s whole ethos is about trying to counter the effects of modern life (the busyness, the stress, the multi-tasking, the always doing) through yoga, I think about think about self-care….a lot. We do so much to care for the ones we love, our children, family, friends, our wider
The answer is usually no. And why not? Often because it feels indulgent and selfish to spend a bit of time on ourselves, and we tend to feel guilty. We could be doing other ‘useful’ things instead, and so our own self-care just
So here’s a challenge – think about ways in which you give and share your energy, and the ways you can give it back to yourself. How you can best recharging yourself from inside, and
Here are 10 ideas of how to create some small acts of self-care in your life. Remember, it’s find what works for YOU and really listening to what you need (not what you think you should do or how you should feel). It could be eating nourishing food, sleeping enough, having supportive friendships and a community, managing stress, exercising,
1. Do something every day that brings you joy.
What would that be like? It could be something as audacious as going to a spa for 2 hours, or it can be a beautiful simple activity like making and enjoying a hot cup of tea, taking a 10 minute walk outside, eating your lunch from a proper plate and without looking at your phone, curling up with a book, journalling, using a delicious body oil after your shower, phoning and chatting with a friend. So come up with a list of things you absolutely LOVE to
2. Be mindful
Be the watcher and the observer of your thoughts and actions throughout the day. Continually be mindful by checking in with yourself – my favourite way to do this is simply watching my breath. Whenever I feel my breath get short, shallow, and in my chest I immediately know I’m tense/stressed/or simply not being mindful. So practice this breathing technique throughout the day, whenever you feel tense or notice you’re breathing only shallow breaths from your chest take a round of 10 deep belly breaths
3. Set boundaries
Boundaries come in the form of so many things. They can be physical boundaries with certain people, places, situations that leave you feeling uneasy. It can also be setting boundaries from work/personal time. A questions you could ask yourself is “how do I feel after I’m around this person – what is the aftertaste?”. If you find that a person or situation doesn’t sit well with you, then don’t make an effort to engage in that relationship again. Think of other ways you
4. Make compromises, but never compromise your joy
Life is about compromises and make compromises but never compromise your joy– joy as your innate needs and wants at your core. Only you know your core beliefs and values, stand up for what you need in relationships, with your life, with your work, etc. and you’ll feel strong and empowered. So make a list of what things are non-negotiable for you to experience joy, always remember them and never compromise.
5.
This goes hand in hand with setting your boundaries and not compromising your joy– what routines or rituals can you develop and stick to that’ll help you feel loved, centred, and rooted? For example a night time routine where you make a relaxing hot drink and read in bed for 20 minutes before going to sleep – it’s a very small thing, it doesn’t cost anything, but it’s something that is done completely for yourself. So why not make a list of things you can incorporate into your routine to keep you on
6. Pay attention to yourself, take some time ‘being’ rather than ‘doing’
This could be through a yoga or meditation practice. Find a regular practice where you can slow down and really connect back in with ourselves, taking some time to sense what your body and mind need. Turn off that always on, always doing – even for just 10 minutes can be so beneficial.
7. Create some time for things you enjoy doing, your interests and hobbies.
It can be easy for these things to fall by the wayside. But doing things that you love,
8. Community and your tribe
Hang out with people who “get” you, who can respect your boundaries, your wishes, you personality and ultimately think about that ‘aftertaste’ I mentioned earlier! Are your relationships, community involvement, and friends, people you want in your tribe? Is there a
9. Let go
Let go of emotional baggage, of people, places, of judging yourself, of life situations that no longer serve you at your core. It’s a challenging road to initially take, but so worth it. From an internal standpoint, what can you let go of? Behaviours, ideologies, pressure, comparison, the list can go on and on. Have that
10. Live with intention and with a greater purpose
As I’ve said, self-care is not selfish – there’s a huge distinction between the two. Loving and caring for yourself means that you’re able to be present for others in your life and on a bigger scale, the world. I know it seems a bit massive when you think “how can I have that much impact on the world?”– you can and you do. Collectively if we all start to shift into practice self-care and self-love, the more love,
So there we are. 10 ideas of how to bring a little self-love and self-care into your life. Its so important, so please give them a go. And of course let me know how you get on, I’d love to hear your own suggestions too.Comments and feedback would be brilliant. 🙂
If you need a jump start with adding some self-care to your life, then join me for each week online for my totally
Thanks for reading, now get on with that nurturing! Susan xx