The Beginnings of Self Care

Self care is possibly our most vital life skill.  There is a lot of struggle around this, especially……dare I say it……for women.  Many of us very naturally nuture other people, but give ourselves the short end of the stick!  Have you ever gotten annoyed because your partner goes to the gym after work while you pick up kids and cook dinner?  Your partner knows how to take care of themselves!   Beginning a practice of self care begins with a simple, yet daunting step.  Stop and check in with yourself.  Don’t resist! There are good reasons to do it. 

Everyone needs to be taken care of.  Your self care has to be a priority FOR YOU.  It’s not on anyone else’s list!  It’s wonderful when others do things to take care of us, but it isn’t their obligation.  Self check ins let us know if we’re shirking our responsibility. 

That self check can teach you so much about yourself.  You’ll discover fascinating things about your reactions to events and people around you.  Anytime you have a prickly feeling, it’s a good time for a self check in. 

More importantly, if you don’t check in with yourself, how do you know what you need?  Do you go around making assumptions about what people around you need?  Bad habit!  For others and for you.  To be responsive to yourself, get to know YOU.

Story:  A while back, I had a really busy month.  I had family visiting one weekend, a family event one weekend, and a trip with friends another weekend.  All these experiences seemed like great self care activities when I planned them and I was looking forward to them.  Strangely, I noticed that after each one, I felt a little dissatisfied, not connected in a way that I expected.  The next week, I had to take a 6 hour drive for a training class.  An hour into the drive, I was feeling so elated I couldn’t ignore it.  I checked in with myself and I noted, I hadn’t spent any alone time in over a month!  I had been missing that!  What are you missing?

If you don’t make self care your priority, no one else will.  Beginning to check in, acknowledge and honor your needs is a huge deal. 

I’m issuing a challenge.  Stop right now and check in with yourself.  Take a deep breath, close your eyes and shift from head to heart.  What does your small, still voice say?   Tell me in the comments below.