Monday, April 27, 2009

The Art of Self Care

Many of us have so many responsibilities that we often forget to take care of ourselves. We sacrifice our own health and well-being for the sake of the more urgent things in life.

In my job, I spend a lot of time and energy caring for others. I love my work. In many ways, I am naturally wired to help and nurture and serve people. The downside is that it is often difficult for me to prioritize taking care of myself. My inclination is to work so hard that I ignore my own physical, emotional, mental or spiritual needs, and then frequently end up bitter, burned out or exhausted.

I have, however, been learning how to take better care of myself. Self care plays a vital role in maintaining a healthy life. As I practice self care habits, I have discovered that I am more refreshed, and therefore more able to give myself to the people and activities that I care about. Currently, as I anticipate becoming a first-time parent, the art of self care seems all the more important. I hope to be a woman who sacrificially loves her children and husband, while also maintaining healthy personal habits.

Today I created a list of my favorite self care activities. Some things on the list are daily practices, while others are less frequent. But all are activities that help me live a healthy and vibrant life.
  • Get eight hours of sleep
  • Exercise
  • Spend time with friends
  • Eat a nutritious breakfast
  • Pray
  • Write a blog post
  • Take a nap
  • Go out with my husband
  • Read a book or magazine
  • Cook
  • Write in my journal
  • Go for a walk
  • Get a manicure
  • Paint
  • Watch a movie
  • Drink a glass of wine
  • Sew or craft
  • Call my mom
  • Take a bath
We all have our own lists of activities that help us develop physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health. If we all included just a few of these practices each day, I truly believe we would be happier, more content people.

What are ways you practice the art of self care?

13 comments:

  1. Run a few miles.
    Brew a batch of beer.
    Acknowledge and hand over anxieties to God.
    Drink said beer.
    Eat breakfast with the TV off.
    Read.
    Go for a hike.

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  2. Mostly what you put on the list.

    The essentials of sleep enough ( although I barely do it well ), eat well ad include more veggies ( usually fail ), exercise ( been going good so far ), spend time with friends at least meet them once or twice a week, write and read blog ( always!), take a nap, watch entertaining dvd's / tv, go out, pamper myself once a week in salon, etc.

    I feel you. Balance is important :)

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  3. Wow, your list is exactly the things I love to do!

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  4. This is a timely post for me as I have felt overrun with too much to do and very little down time. Ideally I would enjoy doing:

    walking
    yoga
    water aerobics
    reading
    drawing
    crafting
    journaling/blogging
    laying in the park looking at the clouds
    singing
    8 hours of sleep
    cooking
    checking in with friends (not email)

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  5. 9 hours of sleep
    Hang out with friends & family
    Drink beer with friends & family
    Jog wtih iPod
    Take Ibuprofen (after the jog or drinking)

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  6. Oh how I needed this post. I need to sit down and think about my list. And then stick to it. Because I've been ignoring myself lately. And there's this awkward silence between us that I'm really not digging. I need my balance mojo back!

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  7. This is absolutely beautiful, I've re-read it a half-dozen times and still think I could read it again.

    Thank you for the reminder.

    xox

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  8. Hey, I went for a run yesterday. And then after that, I took a bath. Two things in one day!

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  9. those definitely sound like great ways to take care of yourself. i have definitely made reading my own personal salvation over the past year. it's amazing.

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  10. I'm in agreement with everyone else... good post.

    I have been thinking about this, but I am pretty sure I have not found all that would give me a balanced life. The things I've come up with so far:
    Exercise
    Sleep (dunno how long yet)
    Eat
    Spend time with friends
    Call pops
    Soak in sun

    I'll continue this list.

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  11. It's so easy to put your health aside and say you'll get to it later because the impact of doing that isn't immediately obvious. It's great that you're making this a priority. I love the list!

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  12. this is such an inspiring post!

    I agree, we never have time to dedicate to ourselves, but we should *make* time. Thank you for reminding me of that!

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  13. wow larissa! i haven't read your blog in a while but i'm on one of my spontaneous self-care days =) it's always a pleasure to read your posts - they bring a smile to anyone's face. and your recipes... sound so good. i will have to try and make them one day.

    hope things are looking better (from the day you posted your recipe for haupia cakes) for you!

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