What is self-care, and why it’s important?

The term self-care is growing in popularity, but do you know what it really means in practice and considerations that will directly benefit your confidence – mental health and wellbeing. 

Self-care is the habit of consistently and consciously improving your physical and mental wellbeing.

What are examples of self-care?

Any activity that you do to make yourself feel cared for or better can be regarded as self-care, such as going for a walk, having a massage, or visiting the dentist.

Why the importance of Self-Care?

We spend more time planning holidays, decorating our homes, buying new clothes for our wardrobes or planning a wedding than we do for ourselves, why do you think that is?

You might say you lead a hectic life and you don’t put yourself first, especially if you have a family with multiple duties, a single parent, a stressful job, or a long commute to work. However, taking care of yourself will make you feel better, and the better you are, the more confident you will be in all aspects of your life – from relationships to work.

Self-care doesn’t have to involve an enormous commitment in time, and it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. It could be relaxing in a bath, reading a motivational book, taking time out to practice mindfulness. It’s about committing to putting yourself first.

The benefits of self-care?

A significant part of self-care is committing to looking after your whole self and becoming more aligned with what you need. Whether it’s more exercise, getting more quality sleep, visiting a healthcare expert to assist with any aches, pains or niggles. Your self-care programme should focus on looking after your mental, emotional, physical health and wellbeing.

• Self-care can reduce depression, anxiety and stress.
• Creating time for relaxing activities, such as practising mindfulness or yoga, plus listening to music, are more familiar self-care pursuits.
• Activities to make you feel more relaxed and help reduce depression, stress and anxiety and lift your spirits.

Self-care can boost your resilience and self-confidence 

Throughout your life, you’ll face challenges, whether in your professional or personal life.

A key component of being resilient is understanding that change and setbacks are a part of everyday life.

Psychologists have identified circumstances that form a resilient person. Among them are:

• A positive attitude.
• The ability to direct emotions.
• The ability to see failure as a form of helpful feedback.

People who are more resilient view difficult situations as a ‘challenge’ to overcome. They view mistakes and failure as lessons to be learned from and as opportunities for development and growth.

While we cannot always avoid them, we can be flexible, remain open and willing to change, adapt and evolve. Self-esteem and confidence play a key component in the recovery from challenging situations. Remember to constantly remind yourself of your strengths and be confident in your ability and approach to react and deal with the setbacks you’ll encounter

Self-care preserves your mental health and wellbeing. 

Prioritising self-care can assist in controlling mental health concerns and might even prevent them from getting worse.

Of course, self-care is not a replacement for professional help. If you are suffering from depression, anxiety, stress or another mental health issue, it’s advisable to seek help from your doctor or a health and wellbeing professional.

Nevertheless, deciding to look to take care of your wellbeing will improve your quality of life.

Self-care can lead to a better relationship with yourself. 

Self-care is about looking internally at yourself and your mental wellbeing. The relationship you have with yourself is vital to your mental health and wellbeing, plus developing happy and healthy relationships with others.

Most people will look outwards towards others for friendship, love, and happiness, rather than looking internally at themselves and developing self-love and self-care.

Practice self-care and being good to yourself regularly is one of the most beneficial things you can do for yourself.

“The relationship with yourself sets the tone for every other relationship you have.” Robert Holden

Action:

I’ve created an easy, effective, robust system that anyone suffering from a lack of confidence, motivation or resilience could immediately apply and benefit from when they work with me. I help people rediscover their identity to feel physically robust and better equipped mentally; ultimately, they feel in better control of their lives.

Please contact me directly for more information about how this can work for you. Email [email protected] or call 07967 052585.