How To Make Time For Self-Care

04 Mar How To Make Time For Self-Care

Why don’t people engage in self-care? How do you make time for self-care? These are the questions that arise when there is a discussion about self-care engagement. Although it seems like a simple concept, intentional engagement in self-care presents as a more complex idea than most of us would like to admit. If you are still trying to figure out how to incorporate YOU time into your busy schedule know that you are not alone, we are in this together. Here’s a list of reasons why you may not prioritize your needs and I have a few pointers that will help you along your journey.

• Rank your value from 1-10. How important are you to the people around you? Your family? Your job? Your friends? Give it some thought. Now, where do you rank yourself on that same spectrum. How important are you, to you? When you see your true value, you will ensure that you are able to do the things that bring you peace and joy. You will better love you. I’m here to tell you that you are worthy of everything that you want and deserve. The good thing is self-care is not earned. You just have to see your value so that you invest the time.

• Understanding Self-Care. Self-Care is more than the frills of massages, facials and lavish vacations. Don’t get me wrong those are great and right about now I could go for a good massage, but the buck does not stop with the frills. Self-Care has 6 components: Mental, Intellectual, Physical, Spiritual, Social and Financial Self-care. In essence, self-care is about tending to the person as a whole. What are the small things you can do on a day-to-day basis that fuel you and reduce stress? Is it sleeping in on a Sunday morning? Is it getting up early to pray or exercise? Is it balancing your budget so that you don’t have to stress about how something is going to get paid? Is it being exported into a fictional world while reading a suspense novel? Is it journaling or talking to a friend about how you are feeling? Or is all of that and some. There is no right or wrong answer to this. The key is to pour into every part of you, intentionally and consistently based on your needs because you see the value in YOU.

• You don’t have a choice. Listen, self-care is not a luxury. It is your birthright. It is a necessity. And if you don’t care for yourself, who will. Pull out your calendar and pencil in, no ink in your self-care. Do something for yourself EVERY DAMN DAY! Yes, every day. It doesn’t have to cost a dime and it doesn’t have to be extensively long. But do something. If you need ideas, next weeks blog will be filled with ideas. There is also a 30-day self-care checklist on our website.

• Everyone else is a priority. Why do you show up for everyone else? I imagine it’s because your family, your job, and your friends are important to you. Bottom line, your family and your job are a priority. Now, let’s go back to list making. Pause for a sec and make a list of your top 10 priorities. Take your time. Are you done? I will go out on a limb and say that either you are not on the list of priorities or you were an after-thought and landed somewhere between 6 and 10 on your list. I hope I’m not right but most people, if they are not intentional, will put work, family, bills, faith, friends, the dog on the list before they put themselves. We’ve got work to do. No worries, we are in this together. I’m headed on a fitness journey, and I’ll need some accountability partners. Let’s help each other. Let me know in the comments where you’ll need a slight nudge or a whole damn push, so that we can support one another.

Whew that was tight. Fast forward a few days, a week even…you’ve created and adjusted your list, you’ve pulled out your calendar, and you are making you a priority. Guess what? Your cup is full, and you can spare a sip for those special people in your life. When you practice self-care, you’re less irritable, you are more energized, you are happier and your cup runneth over. Now, keep this up, prioritize you, pen in, relax, repeat. You’ve Got This!

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