Health Benefits of Self-Care : 5 Easy Tips
Benefits of self-care
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Many health benefits of self-care have been known for a long time and here we are going to look at 5 easy tips for developing and practising your self-care routine.
Although Self-care is a popular buzzword at the moment, the ethos behind it stretches back many years. At one time the concept of self-care came from a medical position, looking after your own mental and physical health under the direction of a doctor. People who worked in high-stress occupations were encouraged to practice self-care as there has always been the belief that you can’t look after others if something is lacking in yourself.
Why is self-care so important?
Self-care is fundamentally important, but unfortunately, not enough people give it any priority. For many, the idea of self-care means thinking about yourself, which can be taken as selfish, but this is not the case at all.
Everybody needs to practice self-care to have a healthy mind and body and to function well in their life, jobs and relationships. Introducing self-care into your life can help to prevent many issues further down the line, from stress, anxiety, heart issues, cancer and other conditions. It can help us physically and mentally and impact every area of our lives.
What is self-care and what are the benefits of self-care?
What exactly is self-care? Well, it’s just like it sounds, it is consciously taking care of yourself and conducting your life in such a way as to improve or preserve your health both physically and mentally.
Self-care is talked about a lot at the moment, the world that we live in is so fast-paced and we can easily get lost in all the commitments that we have.
We have stressful jobs, families and partners to take into consideration, financial responsibilities, and for many of us such hectic lives that it is vitally important to improve the way that we feel and perform, both physically and mentally by adopting self-care habits.
The important thing to realize is that to live a happy, healthy life and take care of and nurture others around you, you have to make sure that YOU are happy and healthy and this means adopting an attitude and habit of self-care. If you are run down, exhausted or stressed then you are not going to be able to perform to the level that you need to either at work or at home.
You will also find that you begin to be dissatisfied with your life and find that you are not enjoying pleasures as much as you should be because stress and exhaustion are getting in the way.
There are numerous benefits of including self-care in your life, from having better physical and mental health, feeling happier and more motivated, having stronger relationships and enjoying the life that you have in a fuller and more committed way.
Looking after you is essential, we all need time for OURSELVES. No matter what you have going on day-to-day you need to take some time out and think about your needs.
Loving and caring for yourself is as important as loving and caring for others.
What are examples of self-care?
There are many examples of self-care and they will differ for each individual but a common selection of examples are;
walking in nature
listening to music
practising mediation
enjoying a pamper session
eating an enjoyable meal and savouring it
practising a sport or exercise
indulging in a favourite hobby
getting a good night’s sleep
putting your own wishes first, even if this means saying no to someone else.
5 benefits of self-care
Good for mental health
Everyone has to take care of their mental health, it is not just people who suffer from issues such as anxiety or stress, we all need to look after our mental health and self-care is a good way of doing so.
Self-care helps reduce stress and anxiety. Modern life is so busy, with so many commitments, time can be spread very thin which can lead to stress and anxiety appearing in life.
When we are feeling good and feel that we are at our best then we can manage our world better. Applying some daily self-care routines can help keep stress levels down aiding good mental health.
Improves Relationships
We all know how we feel when we get tired, irritable, stressed or overworked and the toll that those feelings can have on our relationships with loved ones and work colleagues.
Taking some time for yourself is essential in keeping your relationships healthy and happy. The better you feel about yourself will in turn make you a happier person. Nobody feels happy when they constantly put the needs of everyone else first, this can lead to feelings of resentment. Taking time out for yourself can make you care for others around you better and can produce happier relationships.
Keeps you motivated and productive
Time for yourself is important to keep you motivated and productive. If you lack energy, feel depressed, tired, or emotional then you will find that you are less motivated and productive. Taking care of yourself and spending time on yourself is needed to help you function at your best throughout your life.
Improves self-esteem and positivity
How you feel about yourself goes a long way to how you function in your world. People who suffer from low self-esteem tend to be more negative and less productive in their lives.
A higher level of self-esteem will help you to reach your goals and achieve more in your life. Taking some time each day for just yourself is a great way of making you feel better about yourself and all that you have in your life, therefore, making you feel more positive.
Helps to keep you physically healthy
Apart from good mental health, self-care is also crucial for good physical health.
Taking time for yourself and getting to know yourself keeps you aware of all that is going on with your body and can help you detect when something is wrong.
It can also encourage you to eat a healthy balanced diet and take regular exercise as when you care about yourself, you want to look after yourself.
What are some self-care techniques?
5 easy self-care tips
There are many ways to practice self-care and as everyone is different, you just need to choose what will work for you and what will fit into your lifestyle, here are some examples to help you along.
Take time to do the things you love….sitting watching the sunrise, a walk in nature, or reading a book. Whatever it is, make sure it makes you happy and makes you feel good about yourself.
Spend some time alone. Spending some time in your own company can be one of the best ways to practice self-care.
As lovely as it is to have family and friends around us, sometimes our own company can be the most restorative and joyous way to spend an hour.
Focusing solely on yourself and your own needs, not thinking about anyone else and enjoying some solitude can be the most restorative tonic.
Do something that you love. Whether you have half an hour or an entire day, make sure that your self-care routine is made up of doing things that you love. Whether that is walking in nature, reading a book, having a pamper session or just listening to your favourite music, it needs to be something that is going to fill you with pleasure.
Factor in self-care every day. Ok, so most of us can’t dedicate a whole day all of the time to self-care, but we can find even 10-20 minutes a day to indulge in something good for us mentally and physically, even if this means getting up earlier each morning.
Make it part of your routine. One of the easiest ways to make sure that you fit in some self-care practice every day is to make it part of your routine. Either first thing in the morning or just before you go to bed are great times to have to yourself. Get into a routine and make sure that you stick to it.
Never let anyone talk you out of it. This tip is really important as so many people are swayed by the opinions of other people in their lives. If someone is trying to persuade you to take time for yourself and do something that makes you happy, just ignore them. Everybody is entitled and deserving of their own time and space, never let anyone make you feel guilty. This is too important. Be polite but firm on this point.
Why is self-care important for healing?
Many of the illnesses we have in the modern world are caused by our lifestyle choices. The food that we eat, overdrinking, lack of exercise and not enough sleep are all factors that are totally under our control. We
suffer so often because of the way that we choose to live our lives.
Although many people cite their jobs as the reason for the stress that they have in their lives, we are so often the architects of our disasters.
Self-care can help us to heal from the damage that we put our bodies through daily.
Taking back control; of our own lives and being accountable to ourselves means that we can start to live our lives the way that we want to, leading to longer, healthier, happier lives that are free from as much stress, illness and discomfort.
We need to be able to rely on ourselves and heal ourselves and self-care is the best way for us to do this. It is a cheap, enjoyable way to get the best out of our life. Choosing to be proactive in your own life is a powerful tool that you can have over your health and happiness.
Can self-care help prevent illness and diseases?
Although none of us will ever know what illnesses we may suffer from as we go through life, there are always remedies that we can take to try and ward off as much as possible. This is why practising self-care is so important.
Of course, there are no guarantees that by following even the healthiest lifestyle, nothing will happen to you, it is always good to give yourself the best chance possible.
There is a good deal of evidence to suggest that practising relaxation techniques, and walking in nature are good for cardiovascular and mental health issues. There is also supporting evidence that self-care can aid in restorative sleep which is incredibly beneficial for a whole range of mental and physical disorders.
There is also supporting evidence that good relationships can aid in people having longer and happier lives. The bottom line is that although there are no guarantees in life, you are certainly stacking the odds in your favour if you adopt a good self-care routine and practice it regularly.
Final thoughts
As we have seen there are many health benefits of self-care. Taking time out for yourself is so important and rather than being seen as selfish it should be viewed as being an absolute necessity in your life. Self-care can help improve every area of your life and can help you to live a healthier and happier one as well.
Next time that you feel everything piling up in your life, work commitments, deadlines to meet, or family engagements just take some time out and apply some self-care.
Spending some time on just you will serve you far better in the end than having burnout and not being able to function at all.
Remember when you are feeling at your best you will perform so much better and will be able to handle whatever life throws at you in a much more effective way.
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