Tired, exhausted and ready to give up on life? Turn some attention to yourself and practice these self care tips.
In today’s world, everyone is dealing with a busy life- be it their work, personal life- family and/or relationships or any other aspect of life and it’s quite natural that sometimes we forget to take care of ourselves.
For once, Pause. Breathe.
Ask yourself, did you take care of yourself today? I hope you did. Because self-care is something as necessary as breathing. Its something you cannot do without, even though it seems to be otherwise.
Neglecting yourself for long would not bring you any good. Neither will it help the people in your family who are dependent on you. Your peers at work and your friends would certainly want the best version of you. Your employer wants you to be more active, productive as well so that you are able to function at your best.
What is the need for self-care?
Some might think that caring for oneself is a selfish act, focusing on oneself alone and being inconsiderate towards others. However, that is not the case at all.
Honestly, self-care is not fluffy – it’s something we should take seriously. – Kris Carr
It is quite essential that you maintain a healthy relationship with yourself and not be in a constant state of conflict with oneself. It is important that you have enough confidence in yourself because it directly impacts your productivity and overall performance in the workplace and also how you manage your personal life.
It is crucial that you live up to the challenges that life has to offer you and emerge a winner. Do not let self-doubt creep in, believe in yourself.
You might be thinking, all these are easier said than done.
However, following a few simple and easily doable methods of self-care can greatly enhance your overall physical, mental and emotional well-being.
Here are 10 self -care practices for maintaining a completely healthy body, mind, and soul:
1. Give yourself some ‘me time’.
As you grow up, you realize how important it is to have your own space. Having your privacy and alone time is essential- be it at home or in the workplace.
You must enjoy this time all by yourself and do absolutely anything you feel like. You can do more work if you wish to, you can listen to music, write poetry- set yourself free and let your ideas run amoke.
2. Maintain a compliment file.
Take a colored chart paper and write down meaningful compliments that you frequently get from people around you. stick it to a place where it’s visible. Read that every time you feel your insecurities kicking in.
Trust me, as you read, you will smile to yourself.
3. Maintain a personal journal.
Maintaining a personal diary is essential in order to sum up the collection of the events that have transpired throughout the course of the entire day, your thoughts at the end of it all, what you learned from them and how to change your actions and modify your behavior or reactions in order to obtain better results.
Having a personal diary also helps you to release all the negativity, self-doubt and the general feeling of gloominess that has emerged at the end of the day.
Admit it, this does happen on certain days and all we want to do is relax and de-stress but we are left wondering where we went wrong.
4. Abstain from social media for a few hours every day.
Unplug everything, resist the urge to check your phone constantly for notifications from Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and everything else.
Your job profile might be something that requires you to be on social media, messaging apps like Telegram and WhatsApp for long hours, but it could prove to be quite detrimental to your health and have a severe negative impact on your eyesight and concentration power.
5. Unfriend/mute negatively impactful people on social media.
This is a necessary step that you must take; the earlier you do it, the better.
You need to take the extreme step- block them in case they are constantly pestering you with unwanted messages and calls and you feel yourself overflowing with negativity.
Do not feel guilty about it. You can do away with these people and do better in life.
6. Pay attention to your body.
Yes, pay close attention.
Give love to your body, care for it, nourish it. Exercise regularly, go for walks, preferably every day in the early morning.Take a warm shower after returning home from work.
You can place aromatic candles in a bowl of water and place them in your room or simply take a bath in scented oil.
Apply moisturizer on your body, caress the rough edges. Do pedicure, facials and body massages if you wish to. When you look good to yourself, you instantly feel better.
7. Fix something that has been annoying you at home every day.
It could be a trivial thing like fixing a bulb, painting a wall, stitching back the top button of an old shirt of yours.
You will feel very good about yourself once you have completed it.
8. Do things that make you get out of your comfort zone.
Xenophobia is the fear of the unknown, and it keeps us from trying out many things in our lifetime. Go for that kayaking or skydiving session you have been waiting for so long and yet scared to actually try.
Go for it and release all your inner fears and inhibitions.
9. Do something for yourself, every day.
Yes, instead of the usual altruistic beliefs that society suggests, do things for yourself on a daily basis, things that make you happy.
Do things that you have been dying to do but could not because you prioritize other things over yourself.
10. Spoil yourself.
No one knows you better than yourself. Go for shopping with your close friends and buy yourself garments and accessories you like.
Try wearing things that you feel suits you. Try on the newly launched lipstick shade that you loved.
You are your own princess; feel like one.
11. Help someone in need.
Being an active and responsible member of the society you are living in, it is your duty to reach out and lend a helping hand to the ones who need it.
Feed the poor on the road, donate money for charitable works, distribute old clothes, books to people who need them. However insignificant it might seem to you, but to someone out there, it will be of huge help.
Once you do it, you will feel good about yourself.
You might love people, you might be responsible for something- be it in your household or your workplace. But never ever forget to love yourself. Do take care of yourself, every single day.
Self-care is the non-negotiable. That’s the thing that you have to do. And beauty is the thing that can be the benefit of the self-care. Beauty is not the point. Beauty is just a cute side-effect from self-care. – Jonathan Van Ness
