Mental Health Self Care = Wellness
Self-care means recognizing when you are doing more than you are used to handling and trying to figure out what can be done to slow down. It means knowing who you are and your limits. In essence, it is the act of mindful taking of time to pay attention to you, not in a narcissistic way, but in a way that ensures that you are being cared for by you.
So although a complex concept, Mental Health Self-Care is the same, take time to think of the actions one might take in order to reach optimal mental health. In this day and age there are so many things that can influence our mental health negatively. Even something as simple as watching the news or reading through social media posts can affect us.
Taking some time to care for yourself can help buffer some of the stressful things we experience day to day. Taking just a little time each day or week, to focus on your mental health needs can make a huge difference in how resilient you are mentally and practicing self-care can help you stay healthy, manage your stress, maintain professionalism at work, and help maintain relationships with family and friends.
Physical Self Care – Regular medical care and sleep, exercise and eat healthy, physical touch
Psychological Self Care – Self reflection and meditation, keeping a journal, being creative, seeking support or counselling
Emotional Self Care – Activities that make you happy, practice self love, allow yourself to feel all emotions
Spiritual Self Care – Practice forgiveness, spend time in nature, volunteer, connect spiritually through community or activity (ie. yoga)
Personal Self Care – Spend time with family and friends, learn new skills, plan and set goals
Professional Self Care – Learn to say NO by setting boundaries, leave work at work, use your vacation time and take full lunch breaks
Create your own self-care plan
For each category above, select at least one strategy or activity that you can undertake. You might notice areas of overlap between these categories. It is important to develop a self-care plan that is holistic and individual to you.
ACTION STEPS
Fill your self-care plan with activities that you enjoy
Keep it in a place where you can see it every day.
Stick to your plan and practice the activities regularly.
Re-assess how you are doing at the end of one month, three months etc.
Plans take time to become habits so check-in and be realistic about your own self-care plan.
Here are some of the activities I suggest and personally try to live by when it comes to Mental Health Self-Care:
· Healthy Eating
· Physical Fitness and Immunity
· Reducing Stress
· Time Management
· Relaxation
· Mindfulness
· Assertiveness
· Connect with others
· Be Good to Yourself
Simply acknowledging that we’re all part of thing called, “Life” can be the start to working on taking care of you.
Good luck and I’m here for/with you😊.
Want to be connected with resources specific to you? Feel free to contact me and I can research community programs and organizations that can help you:).
Interested in a fitness/wellness consultation or have some questions about nutrition and your current fitness program? Join any of my groups online (Facebook) and/or pick up my book, How to be Fit for Life - Eight Proven Steps to Reaching Your Fitness Goals, Getting Results, and Living the Fitness Life for more help with your fitness journey. And please feel free to contact me and I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have:).
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