November 3, 2020|Mental Health
We Each Have Individual Self-Care Needs, So Why Are Self-Care Recommendations All The Same?
You’ve had a bad day. Maybe a coworker was particularly difficult to deal with at work, or unexpected car trouble has left you with a hefty bill to pay. Maybe you’ve been feeling down lately due to Seasonal Affective Disorder and it’s left you struggling to find the energy for things you typically jump at the chance to do.
Or perhaps you’re struggling to adapt to COVID-19, which has altered our lives in a wide range of unexpected ways.
Whatever the scenario may be, the next question is the same: Do you have a self-care plan that is customized to your unique preferences and mental health needs?
For the vast majority of people, the answer is “no”.
Instead, we tend to wait until our lives become overwhelming before we seek out self-care activities or reevaluate our personal wellness goals— a practice that definitely doesn’t serve our best interests. What we should be doing is proactively creating a self-care routine that works for us and incorporating our activities into our regular schedule, so we can minimize the frequency of our “low points”.
But here’s the thing— it can’t just be any self-care routine. It needs to be a customized routine that meets our individual self-care needs.
If you aren’t sure what your personalized self-care routine would look like, don’t worry. That’s the point of today’s blog post. We’ll be taking you through the steps… so just keep scrolling!
How to Find Your Ideal Self-Care Routine
1. Meaning
In order for your self-care plan to truly benefit you, it has to align with your sense of purpose or your greater intentions. Consider the things that matter most to you or that bring you the most fulfillment. How can you incorporate those things into your self-care plan?
For example:
- A person who has a passion for baseball might decide to coach a local Little League team as a way of giving back to the community while also engaging in physical activity and distracting themselves from the stress of their full-time job.
- Someone who was raised by a single parent might decide to volunteer at a non-profit organization that supports single parent families.
- The family member of a deceased veteran might find joy in cooking a holiday meal for their community veteran’s association.
2. Enjoyment
Laughter is good for the soul. When setting your personal wellness goals and creating a self-care routine, it’s important not to disregard the positive impact enjoyment can have on our lives. Try to think of activities you genuinely take pleasure in. Don’t worry about what others think of the activities you enjoy. If they make you happy, that’s all that matters.
For example:
- If you’re an animal lover, consider fostering kittens or puppies via your local pet shelter. You get to enjoy all the snuggles you want until they are connected with their forever home!
- Are you a board game fanatic? Why not create a weekly MeetUp and play your favorite games with like-minded enthusiasts?
- Do you enjoy hunting? Schedule a bi-monthly hunting trip and start planning early. Even just the process of picking your location, packing, and practicing your marksmanship can be enough to keep your spirits lifted between trips!
3. Relief
Your personalized self-care routine is all about your spirit and what makes you feel relieved, relaxed, and rejuvenated. For some, spending time with loved ones, connecting, and engaging in conversation may be the best way to find relief. But for others personal time spent in silence may be what restores their energy. It’s crucial to identify what “fills your cup” and what doesn’t if you want your plan to work well for you.
For example:
- Morning yoga sessions can be exhilarating and motivating for the right people, while others find them to be draining and inconvenient. If you’re someone who benefits from exercise in the morning, consider incorporating it into your self-care plan. But if you don’t, simply plan your activity for later in the day.
- Some men find it relaxing to tinker in their workshop, complete home projects, or work on their car. But there are also men who find these tasks to be overwhelming, aggravating, or burdensome— especially after a long, hard day at work. For the latter group, it doesn’t make sense to incorporate these activities, as they wouldn’t provide relief.
- If you’re prone to depression, you may find it revitalizing to take a nap when you get home from work, as a way to let your mind settle before facing your usual household chores. However, there are also individuals who become increasingly depressed when they crash for extended periods of time. Pay close attention to how you feel after you rest. Do you have more energy? Does your mood improve? If not, napping may not be the ideal self-care activity for you.
Remember, we ALL need a personalized self-care routine (this includes men, women, children, and seniors). It is only by effectively caring for ourselves and protecting our own mental health that we are able to show up and be present for those we care about.
Now that you know how to find your ideal self-care routine, will you be putting a plan in place? Be sure to share your ideas in the comments section if you do!
Also, did you know I am an experienced keynote speaker? I would be happy to speak to your team about the importance of self-care and provide more in-depth suggestions for maintaining personal wellness. Reach out today to learn more!