Why self-care matters
“To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance” Oscar Wilde.
How often do you make time for yourself?
When I start to feel myself drifting from my happy place, I look at the different parts of myself that I could be neglecting.
Have I been sleeping too much or not enough?
Have I neglected my exercise routine?
Am I connected to myself spiritually?
These are all forms of self-care that are important and help me to be a happy and connected soul.
Self-care can take many forms from switching your phone off for a couple of hours, to journaling your thoughts or spending some extra time on a delicious home cooked meal.
This practice of looking after your wellbeing can be as extravagant or as simple as you need in that very moment.
There have been times when I have felt lonely and needed some extra love and self-care.
I made sure that when I was feeling low, I looked at how I could make myself happy.
Reaching out to family and friends is important and obviously, if you’re really suffering, it’s always advisable to get professional help but if like me, you just have moments when you feel ‘a bit off’, self-care can really switch your perspective around.
Here are some ways you can show yourself the love:
Say it with flowers! Okay in an ideal world, the man or woman of our dreams will turn up on a horse with some flowers yeah yeah yeah blah blah. But before this magical declaration of love happens, why not treat yourself to a bouquet and every time you take a peek at them, you’ll be reminded of the love you have sown yourself.
Exercise! Move your body and it will move your mind too. Buy yourself some sassy workout pants and get moving! (Disclaimer: sassy pants are not vital, but they are a good motivator!)
Have a healthy sleep routine. If you can, try and have a ‘no screen time’ rule before bed and why not fit in some meditation time too. Failing that, get yourself an eye mask and blast out some ocean sounds!
Journal. If in doubt, write it out. I love journaling! It helps me to unravel my thoughts and I like reading it back which sometimes can be insightful and other times can be quite embarrassing. Like the time you wrote a list of the things you liked and disliked about your ex!
Say no. If you are tired, cancel. If you feel overworked, ask for support, or even a day off to recoup. Saying no is a crucial part of self-care and just think, by saying no to others, you’re saying yes to yourself more which will make you an even happier more amazing version of yourself!
Like I said before, self-care can come in many forms and the main thing is that you remember to prioritise yourself too.
‘You, yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.’ Buddha.
Love Anna x
