Author: Isabella Adams, MSW
Caring for your mental health is one of the best investments you can make. In this series, we’ll share practical strategies and encouraging perspectives to help you navigate stress, build resilience, and create more space for the things that bring you peace.
Self-care is a term that has been utilized in the medical community for decades, describing patient-led behaviors meant to enhance physical and mental health. Engaging in self-care can be a daunting task, with barriers to engagement typically pertaining to cost or time constraints.
Some misconceptions about self-care exist that prevent people from taking the time to dedicate themselves to these activities. Some of these myths are:
- Self-care is selfish: Taking inventory of our needs and taking the time to address them is not selfish; it is necessary for our own ability to handle life’s stressors and help others through their own.
- Self-care is time-consuming and/or expensive: Self-care encompasses a range of activities and oftentimes does not require any monetary cost. These activities can also be integrated into the busiest schedules.
- Self-care is not for everybody: Everyone has stressors and ensuring that we are mentally and physically capable of handling these stressors is necessary for our ability to face them.
- Self-care is a reward: You do not need to work to “deserve” self-care; you already do.
- Self-care is the same thing as self-soothing: Self-soothing can be useful in small amounts; however, self-care aims to address areas in our lives that need our attention. Engaging in self-care is intentional and not always comfortable.
Self-care can be divided into many different areas of life such as physical, emotional/mental, social, spiritual, and professional/educational. Some forms of self-care can be integrated into daily life: taking a short walk outside, short-form journaling, practicing meditation, maintaining a healthy sleep schedule, or working in a personal garden. Others may be utilized on a weekly or monthly basis, such as making time to spend with loved ones and friends and volunteering in your community. Lastly, some are longer-term engagements rather than singular activities, such as creating a monthly budget or setting productive boundaries in your personal and/or professional life.
The goal of engaging in self-care is to fuel the mind and body to better prepare yourself to engage in daily obligations. Self-care is not “one size fits all”, take inventory of your needs and find new ways to engage healthily in your daily life.
National Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988, or visit 988lifeline.org, to connect with a counselor. Counselors are available 24/7/365, and all communication is free and confidential. https://988lifeline.org/
References:
https://www.malvernbh.com/blog/self-care-for-mental-health/
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/caring-for-your-mental-health
https://news.dasa.ncsu.edu/self-care-what-it-is-and-what-it-is-not/
