I spoke to a dear friend today who told me about her self-care routine. I was impressed and decided to share it with you as I intend to adopt some of her ideas myself. But first let me tell you about the conversation that brought about this information.
I have a client who recently came to me about her stressful lifestyle and situation. Her sleeping is off and she’s experiencing bouts of depression and crying. After working with her for a while, I was shocked at how many burdens this woman is carrying each day in her life. And what was worse she didn’t even recognize that all she was doing was stressful and unusual. Unfortunately, her situation is not new. Women often stretch themselves too far without a thought about their health and wellness.
Many are in situations where the thought of self-care is seen as selfish. Women are still the natural care-providers in the home and sometimes out of the home. Working a job and working at home can be considered natural. Add to that a lack of sleep, carrying too many mental and emotional burdens, not having outlets for health and happiness, and being too stressed out and you have a dangerous mixture.
That’s what my client was under – a dangerous mixture. Then she wondered why she couldn’t jump out of bed in the morning, why tears came to her eyes during the day at unexpected time. I asked her when she had last taken time for herself and she couldn’t answer. That was an idea that had long left her mind. She was so busy caring for others that self care didn’t even come onto her “to-do” list.
So today, the conversation with my dear friend turned to women and self-care. My friend let me know that at her age in life, she was semi-retired yet still working to pay her monthly bills. Yet, she worked hard for two or three days then took a day off to relax. She might stay at home and read a book, sit outside for a while to feel the sun on her face, or go for a drive to a new location and treat herself to lunch. Other ways to do self-care were shared but the main thing was taking time to care for herself.
I even picked up a few tips because self-care is not something I put on my schedule often enough. A woman’s health can only be done by the person in the body. No one can make you take care of yourself except you. If you haven’t been taking time for yourself lately, think about all the time you’ll have to do nothing when you are either lying flat on your back in bed or the worse, dead. That’s pretty harsh I know but it’s something women need to consider. Self care is the best care. For most, it’s the only type of care we haven’t mastered.
Take time for you. Life is short and you only go around once. Make self care a part of your normal schedule and learn to make it the best care you practice.