Whew. We made it. We got through one of the most difficult and contentious years that most of us have had in such a very long time. I don’t know about you, but a lot of the time, I found myself on autopilot. Did I make time for self-care? Not as much as I’d like to, and I’m feeling it mentally and emotionally.
One of my goals it to focus on 2021 as a year of self-care. My word of the year, “Pause” is all about doing just that – intentionally stopping, taking myself off of auto-pilot, and doing something nourishing for myself. I wanted to share a few tips on how to make this the year you fall in love with yourself!
Self-Care Matters
Self-care is one of the most important things you can do for your mental and physical health. The premise is easy. Self-care means asking yourself what you need and then doing that thing.
Self-care is making an appointment with your therapist. Buying yourself flowers. Taking a break from work. Cooking a nourishing meal. Making a plan to pay off your debt. It encompasses the whole spectrum of life but the most important ingredient is you being present in your own life.
So while self-care isn’t all hot bubble baths and reading a book while you’re curled up with your blankets – that is a huge part of it and part of stress management!
Look After Your Mental Health
Self-care falls into so many categories – physical, mental, social, spiritual – just to name a few, and they’re all equally important, but your mental health usually has one of the biggest tolls on your health as a whole.
When we look at tending to our mental health it means we take a look at the people we surround ourselves.
We research Mental health services when things are getting hard and we need more help than we can give ourselves.
It means learning our triggers. Taking breaks. Taking medications, vitamins, or supplements – what works for you.
It’s okay not to be okay, but it’s not okay to stay in that space without doing anything to improve it. Reach out for help when you need it.
Set (Attainable) Goals for the Year
Self love goals are the best goals to have! Instead of making goals that have a clear success/failure element, create goals that allow you to add more/less to your life.
Focus on drinking *more* water instead of setting a concrete goal of drinking a specific amount each day.
Add more movement into your life instead of planning on going to the gym x amount of times a week.
The best changes are the ones that are slowly incorporated into your life so that they become part of your daily routine!
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