What is self care? What does it mean to you?

One of my closest friends, Ashley had told me that, "So during the turning point in my mental health treatment, when I started therapy and medication, I was extremely tearful and felt scared by it. I was on the phone with my mom and she told me 'For the rest of your career you're going to be on that side of the table. But right now it’s time for you to be on the other side of the table' and I thought that was a really cool perspective."

Lately, the subject evolving around self-care has come up in my classes, discussions with my friends and I have come to realize that self-care is so important.

Self-care is just as it sounds. Taking care of yourself. You might not have thought about it in this perspective, but you have to help yourself before you can help others whether it be friends, family or in a professional way. You can't take on a challenge, commitment, etc. when it is putting your physical, mental or spiritual health at risk.

There are various ways that you can practice self-care that I have learned. Such as going to a run, a drive or even coloring. You can also journal, watch Netflix, do some crafts, read a magazine or even read your favorite novel for the 10th time. Even taking the time to take a nice walk outside and absorb what nature has to offer. It is all about finding what is right for you. It does not have to be big lavish things, but it can be a little thing like taking a shower when you know you need one instead of waiting until the next day.

It has opened my eyes that to do better, you must first go to do better for yourself. If you are dealing with stress now, practicing self-care can help relieve some of that. Another thing to remember is to practice self-care continuously rather than when you are feeling at you're worst. Incorporate into your daily life should be a priority; take a breath now, rather than fall down in exhaustion later.

I have said it once already, but self-care is so important. It can help you gain control of your life. I can improve your overall health. Self-care can produce positive feelings, which in turn improve self-confidence and self-esteem too. It is important for your family and friends too. They learn from you, so setting certain boundaries to take care of yourself shows them that they too need to put themselves first and to not overwork themselves. Practice self-care now and you will be thanking yourself that you did.

So why engage in self-care?

Because you are worth it.