How To Grow Your Self-Care Practice Every Day

By
Young and Raw

I have been thinking a lot about self-nourishment lately.  All of my life, I have never been a very good self soother. I have always been a rather practical person as well, so the idea of taking a bath just for the fun of it was never something that I did. If it did not have a clear purpose, I was not prone to doing it.

After years of this way of thinking, I found myself feeling a little depleted. Don’t get me wrong, I do take the time to exercise, eat nutritious foods and sleep, It was not as though I was fully denying myself. But I did not afford myself the little luxuries. I feel that I had been sending myself the message that taking care of my more subtle needs, the need for comfort and pleasure, was selfish. However, due to the fact that I was feeling run down for no apparent reason, I took it upon myself to re-evaluate my beliefs around self-care.

I started small. I would set aside 5 minutes in my day to write in my journal. Try this. When you start small you create ‘easy wins’. After all, it’s usually the getting started part of a habit that’s hardest. So if you tell yourself you’re just going to spend 5 minutes reading your book or having a laydown, you’re more likely to do it. You’re also more likely to spend longer than those 5 minutes as you will find it’s not a chore, it’s actually enjoyable! For example, I would carve out some time to just go sit outside. Later, I even booked myself a massage! What I learned was that by taking care of myself, I felt far more charged up, and ready to help others.

Now I feel that taking care of myself, taking time to really nurture myself is not a luxury, but a necessity. I am a better caretaker for others, when I have taken the time to be a caretaker for myself. Do you take time to take care of you?

Young and Raw
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