Benefits of self-care

Self-care is what you are doing to worry about your mind, body, and spirit. Practicing self-care can help anyone feel mentally and emotionally strong when handling life’s many ups and downs.

1. Slow down

Slowing down can take many forms. Possibly it is denying responsibilities that don't serve you, cutting out time in your day for yoga or espresso with a companion or just taking a couple of full breaths before a gathering. These activities take us back to the current second and help us to re-center around what is really significant. When my daily agenda is longer than my girl's Christmas list of things to get, and I'm looking over Facebook I know it's an ideal opportunity to re-focus and re-focus on. Regularly what I need to do is make self-care my main concern and afterward return to the remainder of my to-do list. Set explicit schedule openings when you don't work.

2. Boost Immune System

Self-care will help boost your immune system. What do taking your vitamins/supplements, getting lots of rest, exercising, mindfulness, and taking a hot bath all have in common? They all activate the Parasympathetic Nervous System. When you activate the PNS it puts your body into ‘rest + restores’ mode, giving our bodies the chance to decompress from our generally hectic daily lives. The more we can incorporate these activities into our routines, the better we can cope with our hectic lifestyle and the less time we actually have to make ‘busy.’ All of this gives the body the opportunity to build its defenses against those nasty cold bugs that like to attack when we’re at our weakest.

Once you implemented a regular self-care routine you will notice a dramatic decrease in the number of sick days you had. Not to mention the positive correlation you can see in your energy levels!

3. Improve  Self-confidence

Self-care improves your self-compassion. It’s pretty simple, the more you take care of yourself, the better you feel. Dr. Kristin Neff defines Self Compassion as “being warm and understanding toward ourselves when we suffer, fail, or feel inadequate, rather than ignoring our pain or flagellating ourselves with self-criticism.” it improves your self-confidence.

4. Love yourself

When you really started paying attention to the voices in your head you can realize that you would never talk to a loved one the way you are talking to yourself. Noticing your self-talk is a form of self-care in itself. When we start to treat ourselves with love and compassion we start to view the world differently, we start to view ourselves as part of the collective human experience rather than in isolation (aka the “why me” voice). Taking care of yourself will undoubtedly lead to more self-compassion.

5. Find yourself

You’ll find out who you really are. How many times do you stop and think, what do I LOVE to do. What really lights me up? What can I do for myself that makes me feel good? A few of us can answer this pretty easily, but many cannot. As we grow up and leave ‘childhood’ behind we are conditioned to believe that play is for kids and that doing too much for ourselves is ‘selfish.’ At least those were some of the beliefs I picked up along the way. I lost touch with myself and started seeking fulfillment from outside sources. As my world opened up to self-care, what it was, and the importance of it, I have completely reconnected with myself. I can now answer those questions without any doubt AND I know what I need to do when I’m feeling out of alignment.

6. Help Others & Improve Relationships

You will have more to give others. Not less. You didn’t realize it at the time but for many years people one of the ones carrying around the belief that self-care is selfish. That if you are doing something for yourself it meant you ain’t doing something for someone else. And you valued your contributions to others (especially those you loved) higher than yourself. What you can realize is that the more you practiced your own self-care the more capacity you had for family and friends. It’s a bit like building muscle, it takes practice and time. But so, so worth it. It's a key to a good relationship with oneself and others.

7. Develop Your Self-Care Plan

Take a bath. Detox baths are incredibly stress-reducing. Add 1 cup of Epsom salts, ½ cup dead sea salt + ½ cup baking soda to the water to take it up a notch. Sit and relax for a minimum of 20 minutes.

Meditate. Even a 5-minute meditation will serve you. If you can find 20 minutes, even better.

Nurture. Take a look at your diet and figure out where the gaps are and then consider filling those in with a supplement (even the best diets don’t give us everything we need). For inspiration check out the Botanica line of supplements.

Create. Whether it’s cooking, baking, or a DIY project that’s on your list. Find your creative side.

Move. Get out in nature, stretch, move your body. Gaia offers great guided Yoga classes if you can’t get to class.

8. Self- Motivation

Stay driven and meet your goals. Self-care also helps us sharpen our mental and physical health through better self-esteem, stress management, and overall well-being. These behaviors help provide balance in an increasingly overstimulating world. Self-care includes all the things you do to take care of your well-being in four key dimensions – your emotional, physical, psychological, and spiritual health. Good self-care is key to improved mood and reduced anxiety. So self-care help to be motivated and to think about oneself.

9. Forms Habits

Self-care is important to maintain a healthy relationship with yourself as it produces positive feelings and boosts your confidence and self-esteem. Also, self-care is necessary to remind yourself and others that you and your needs are important too. It may boost your physical Health, Can Improve Emotional Health, Makes You a Better Caregiver, Provides a Break from Stress, Offers you Time Alone, Generates Soothing Feelings. It may form your habits.

10. Stay Joyful

Self-care has been defined as, "a multidimensional, multifaceted process of purposeful engagement in strategies that promote healthy functioning and enhance well-being."It's important to assess how you're caring for yourself in several different domains so you can ensure you're caring for your mind, body, and spirit. Mental self-care also involves doing things that help you stay mentally healthy. Practicing self-compassion and acceptance, for example, helps you maintain a healthier inner dialogue, makes you live joyful, gifts you a healthy heart.