By GGTW Health and Wellness contributor Gaithri Raj
The GoGetTheWorld team would like to introduce our #SelfCareWednesday series! On the last Wednesday of each month, we will take a break from our regular posts and share our ideas and self-care practices with you. We want to highlight the importance of self-care in your journey to Go Get The World, while we make it a fundamental component of how we embrace, encourage and empower women.
Obviously, self-care can be deeply personal and we cannot possibly prescribe you a ‘to do list’ ourselves. Every single one of you is unique in what you find restorative and helpful. The point is to make the time to practice your special self-care activities.
Also, let’s get real about this. Self-care can be a little challenging if you’ve not practiced it regularly. And if you are anything like me, it is often the item that moves further and further down your list of tasks. But this is exactly what you want to avoid.
We (women) need to do a better job of putting ourselves higher on our own ‘to-do’ list.
Michelle Obama, Vogue
The former First Lady reminds us that we are often guilty of doing an amazing job of caring for everyone else, but not so much when it comes to taking care of ourselves. Our introductory post in this series aptly addresses this by dealing with the first step towards a foundation in self-care:
Practice self-care on a regular basis and make it a routine.
Many of us are not able to steal “me” time on a daily basis, but we can set a goal to check in every other day or at least once a week. So, let’s start small. Focus on something important to you. Find a day, a weekend, an hour or even a couple of minutes to begin your foundation towards self-care. Then do that thing that helps reset your focus or get in touch with yourself. That’s it!
At a loss for ideas? Here are some of the ways the Go-getters practice self-care. Try one. Try them all!
- Amanda: After a long day at the office, a bubble bath is the perfect way for me to unwind and take a break. Sometimes I read, but other times I just like to relax, breathe and reflect on the day. I love using either Epsom salts, bubbles or Lush bath bombs. I feel pampered and calm right before bed.
- Gaithri: I’ve set my phone to automatically turn on Do Not Disturb mode at night and turn it off in the morning. (Unless you are my mom…then you get to be on my ‘exceptions’ list!)
- Jessi: My self care is books. My whole life I have buried myself in books and I can blow through 2-3 a week if I’m in a weird headspace. Even walking around a bookstore or a library and browsing the different tittles, reading book jackets, brings me back to myself and it’s a place I always know I can go if I needed!
- Kait: Long walks are one of my favorite therapeutic activities for mental and physical health. When I’m looking for something with a little bit of higher intensity, I lean on spinning as well. I try to view exercise as a blessing instead of an obligation and it helps to set my mind to “I get to do this because my body is capable of being active” instead of “I have to do this.”
- Lori: My self-care is hiking in the mountains or even by the ocean. Being in nature calms and soothes me. It makes me realize how tiny my worries and insecurities are. It also challenges me. I was never much of an outdoors person growing up. In fact, I didn’t start hiking until my 40s. Pushing myself to climb, to scamper up rocks, along with seeing the beauty of nature, gives me a sense of purpose and of wonder. I never feel closer to God then when I’m on a mountain top or watching the ocean waves crashing on the shore.
- Precious: I have turned off email and social media notifications on my phone, and I practice saying no. If my anxiety or general well being seems off, then I start by saying no to things until I have recharged enough to feel like “me” again. I also run, do CrossFit, and read.
- Tricia: I go for long walks or snowshoe in the woods. It’s peaceful and lets me get away from all the noise of modern life. Because I live in a rural area, I never know which animals I might come across, and seeing them always makes me happy. I’ve seen frogs, salamanders, a (very elusive) fisher, red foxes, and all kinds of birds. Last week, the neighbors’ alpacas were out and they came over to the fence to say good morning!
In the coming months, we will share some tried and true evidence-based practices, along with more tips of how our team of Go-getters rests and recharges their batteries. And, if you have ideas or ways you practice self-care, send them along! We’d love to include them in a post (and send you some GGTW swag as a thank you)!
Go Get The World 