It’s another morning where you are scrambling. Not only do you have to get yourself ready, but everyone in the house too. You skip breakfast to make sure everyone else is dressed, fed and out the door on time. You get to work and dive into all the tasks and meetings, while fielding a barrage of questions from coworkers. A meeting goes late, and there goes your time for lunch. In the evening, after you get home from work, you are too tried to think about working out. Instead you clean and do laundry before you head to bed later than you should. The next morning, you wake up to do it all over.

As our days become filled with work and taking care of others, we stop focusing on taking care of ourselves. In the short-term we may be able to handle these delays; however, as time goes by that neglect takes its toll.

Making time for self-care is important because you need to take care of your body and mind. Self-care is also essential in order to foster a positive relationship with yourself based on kindness and respect in order to love yourself. This can help your confidence and motivation as well as your relationships with others.

Try some of these creative ideas for self-care:

• Avoid perfectionism and envious comparisons. These can create self-disgust.
• Don’t keep feelings bottled up inside. Express yourself.
• Develop a network of people you can call for an emotional lift
• Learn to take part in guilt free playtime—a meaningless activity just because it feels good. Remind yourself you are entitled to take time to play. 
• Let your hair down from time to time and do something ridiculous and unexpected. Make use of your sense of humor and craziness. Laugh!
• Learn to say no. Figure out how to control (shut off and turn on) your compassion valve so you don’t get overwhelmed.
• Get enough physical exercise. It doesn’t have to be a lot and you don’t need fancy equipment. Get outside when it’s nice. Go for a walk or bike ride.
• Learn to relax. There are plenty of websites, apps and books to learn relaxation techniques.
• Take time to reflect.
  • Tend to your spirit life. Consider meditating on the sublime aspects of life. Listen and respond to your needs. Cultivate things that promote peace, beauty, serenity and unity in your life. Have the courage to find your own path if traditional religion has not worked for you.
  • Change jobs, or interests or hobbies if you are unable to modify your present job, to fit your personal strengths and abilities. 
• Learn to be an encouraging person -- every time you encourage another person you reaffirm your best self.

Having good self-care will actually make you more productive and happier in the long run. You shouldn’t feel guilty for taking time to take care of you. If you feel you could benefit from someone helping you implement better self-care techniques, schedule an appointment with Prevea Behavioral Care by calling (920) 272-1200 in eastern Wisconsin or (715) 717-5899 in western Wisconsin.