Self-Care For Busy People: Four Ways To Honor Yourself Today
WITHOUT
a spa day, a shopping spree, or an Insta-worthy vacay!
Sometimes it can feel like "self-care" has become another thing to add to your already overflowing to-do list, another item to fit in your already stretched budget. And if you don't find the time/money for it, you feel guilty because you've been told it means you must not value your own happiness enough.
Redefine self-care with me, and implement these strategies TODAY.
Stop Saying Things Like This: “I'll go to the bathroom when I finish this email/project/assignment/treatment note.”
Why do we do this to ourselves?! Try today to notice if you put these restrictions on yourself, and instead, prioritize what your body is telling you! Whether it's to refill your water bottle or take a bathroom break, place your own needs above that piece of work - it will be waiting for you when you get back. Taking care of our most basic needs isn’t a reward for completing a task. Notice how it feels to honor what your body physically wants and needs instead of ignoring it - it's the simplest form of self-care!
Let Go of Guilt and Shame Around Self-Care To-Dos That Don’t Work For You.
Instead, start to notice your own natural rhythms.
Self-care lists often look like: "Get up extra early to fit in your workouts! Meditate every morning! Journal twice a day!" If these things don't fit your lifestyle - you hate writing, or it's already a struggle to get out of bed when your alarm goes off - you may feel like you're failing at them, when it reality, they just aren't meant for you. Start to explore what suits you better - singing your emotions out in your car? Working out on your lunch break or after work? What would it feel like to honor yourself in this way instead?
Incorporate a Gratitude Practice
This isn't the shaming of, "so many people have it worse, so I should be grateful."
This is allowing yourself to physically experience the chemical changes that happen in your body when you are truly thankful for something. Some people like creating a little list in their planner or phone - the act of writing it and reading it creates gratitude and joy. I like to send a text or email to someone I want to thank - I like knowing that I'm giving them a little emotional and physiological boost too! It's simple, it's quick, and it's a habit you'll want to keep once you get started.
Reverse The Golden Rule
We all know The Golden Rule: "treat others as you would want to be treated."
Now reverse it. Could you treat yourself with as much grace, kindness, tolerance, and forgiveness as you would offer a friend, a student, a family member, a colleague, a stranger? Often we are much harder on ourselves than we realize, and speak to and about ourselves in a way that we would never speak to or about a friend! What would it feel like to change this? This is one of the most important ways you can care for yourself - and it costs zero time and zero dollars.
I hope that these self-care strategies feel completely attainable, even if time or money (or both) are tight, and make your days a little bit better!
You Are Worthy. YOU ARE VALUED. YOU ARE Notorious.
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