Adding some self-care routines such as good sleeping habits, regular exercise helps to keep the body in check.
In a study published in Energy Research & Social Science in November 2020 of nearly 150 people in Sweden who own fireplaces, people often performed fireplace routines, or “cozy fire making,” at the end of the workday to create an atmosphere of coziness and well-being. In the study, they reported associating fire with characteristics like harmony, calmness, happiness, and joy.
Calm and measured breathing can have immediate effects on your mental and physical state, whether the tension comes from the relentless news cycle or your ever-present housemates. Do your breathing practice regularly to start or end your day in a positive way, or try it in a moment when you need a little more zen.
If you tend to space out or feel “stuck” when you’re stressed, getting active can get you back in the zone. Turn up your favorite playlist and dance in your living room, swim laps, take a brisk walk around the block.
Rhythmic movements get you out of your head and into the present moment so you’re ready for the next challenge.
When we’re stressed, it’s easy to forget that self-care means doing things that bring us joy. With many of our go-to fun activities no longer available to us or shifted online in a socially distanced world, it’s hard to get in the mindset of having fun for its own sake. So step away from the computer. Don’t check your email this weekend. Forget what the world wants you to be concerned about. Go do something fun!
Take care of your physical and mental health by giving your brain a break and encouraging better sleep in your screen-free area.” Of course, if that’s not exactly practical for you, consider giving yourself a cut off—at which point, you can set your phone on night mode (don’t worry, you can program certain numbers to still ring, in case of emergency!) and feel free to pick up a book instead.
Turn late nights into long brunches. A study in Sleep Health found that 41% of parents said too many late activities — their own and their kids’ — kept them from getting a good night’s sleep. Disrupted sleep causes ghrelin, also known as the hunger hormone, to increase, and leptin, the “stop eating” hormone, to decrease, leading to overeating. Extra ghrelin can also make you crave high-carb, high-calorie foods. Plus, when you’re exhausted, deep-dish pizza is much more appealing than steamed veggies and exercise is less enticing than hitting the snooze button.
The way you think and the things that you’re filling your mind with greatly influence your psychological well-being. Mental self-care includes doing things that keep your mind sharp, like puzzles, or learning about a subject that fascinates you. You might find reading books or watching movies that inspire you to fuel your mind. 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. Here are a few questions to consider when you think about your mental self-care: Are you making enough time for activities that mentally stimulate you? Are you doing proactive things to help you stay mentally healthy?
Because every person’s schedule and specific needs are different, practicing self-care can look different for everyone. A list of self-care activities for teachers could include the following ideas: Because teaching can be socially overwhelming, make sure to plan at least 10 or 20 minutes a day where you can take a break and decompress by yourself. Without a sense of compassion for yourself, you can’t practice positive self-care. If you struggle with low confidence levels, find ways to work on and improve your self-image. Bring a self-care “emergency pack” to school with things you enjoy so you can de-stress during your break if needed. Learning to recognize and process your emotions can lead to healthy self-care habits. Keep a journal and write in it to work through difficult teaching days when you feel overwhelmed. Social support is an important factor in self-care, so find a way to connect with loved ones at least once a day. This could be having dinner with your family, calling a friend, or relaxing with your significant other.
So, wear what makes you feel good. If it’s a lot or if it’s a little, wear what makes you feel confident, comfortable, and happy.
We’re socialized to be competitive, so comparing ourselves to others is natural. But it can be dangerous. There’s just no point in comparing yourself to anyone else on the planet because there’s only one you. Rather, focus on yourself and your journey. The shift of energy, alone, will help you feel free.
A few more ideas for your self-care habit: It might center on creative outlets and hobbies. This is important if you just don’t feel like yourself unless you get to spend regular time on a specific activity you love. Maybe you’ll carve out two hours a week for your favorite hobby, or get up 30 minutes early to write or paint each morning or spend time exploring nature for one hour a week.
Meeting one’s own needs tends to make a person more able to help and support others and, generally speaking, to obtain more happiness and fulfillment from life. In order to facilitate your own healthy routine to make sure your needs are met, it can be helpful to develop a self-care plan centered on three key components: physical, mental, and spiritual self-care.
Self-care can take many forms, such as physical, spiritual, and emotional self-care. It’s an important factor in maintaining health and well-being. Self-care might range from a hot soak and yoga to everyday activities like preparing meals you want to eat or dressing in your choice of style. Self-care is not an indulgence. The WHO recognizes it as a crucial aspect of health maintenance. Tailoring self-care for your budget, the season in life, and personal needs for whole-body wellness, inside and out, can be energizing and exciting in itself.
If you haven’t got self-care routines and rituals in place, advice to “make time for self-care” can feel like just one more thing on your endless to-do list. Here’s the good news: self-care doesn’t have to be complex, time-consuming, or expensive. It doesn’t require special equipment or a guru to tell you what to do.
From the above, it is clear that self-care is something patients do all the time and that, in most cases, the majority of care received by patients with long-term conditions is self-care.
It’s tempting to say that self-care is anything that makes you feel good, but as we all know, what feels good isn’t always good for us. Pouring another glass of wine, opening another bag of chips, or binge-watching all eight seasons of Game of Thrones might be fun once in a while, but it’s unhealthy to make these things daily habits. Likewise, self-care isn’t just taking a spa day now and then or splurging on a tropical vacation (though these things are lovely!).
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