If you are anything like I used to be, the frustration mounts when you hear the term "self care". As though it's so easy to just find time for that Yoga class, massage, or reiki session. Have kids? Run your own business? Time is precious and not so easy most days to come across an extra hour among everything else on your plate. Prioritizing it can feel impossible most days, especially on the days you can hardly find time to eat. We are all aware that good sleep, nutrient dense foods, and keeping hydrated do absolute WONDERS for our bodies and minds. Although these are basic needs, many of us really need to start our self care regimen there. The idea of doing for yourself can feel SO selfish, but is it really?
Of course we all want to look and feel our best, but what about our mental health? A few of the most note worthy benefits of self care on your mental health is reduced stress and anxiety. Our daily lives can be overwhelming and hectic. For many, the moment your feet hit the floor in the morning it's go-go-go. Meeting your kids needs to get them fed, ready and out the door to school. Get yourself fed, ready, and off to work. Then you spend all day at work, focusing on the companies needs. Upon returning home the focus shifts again on the kids needs with homework, the families needs with dinner and straightening up the house. This often takes us much later into the night than we would like, preventing the sleep we need, and where was the time for you? Brutal truth? Sometimes we have just have to want it enough to force the time for it.
I realized recently that we should be our favorite person. We can be whoever we want. We can be everything we admire in others. Maybe we can't become a billionaire tomorrow.......however we should absolutely love ourselves more. I wonder what the world would look like if we loved ourselves enough to prioritize our own needs the way we prioritize others? How would our own self love be projected out into the world, and how would that impact our stress and anxiety? I imagine it would help us say "no" to the things that do not serve us. To say "no" to the things that do honor who we are and what we believe, and I would love to live in that world. Go ahead and give it try. Love yourself today.
Namaste