Self-Care Tips

Learn: Have you ever wondered why self-care is so important? It is up to you to ensure that your needs are consistently met. It is important to remember that self-care is not selfish. Taking care of your needs is the best gift that you give to yourself.

Take a quick self-care inventory with a self-care assessment and identify the areas that may need your attention:

Self-Care Assessment

Physical Self-Care

• I make healthy food choices

• I take care of my personal hygiene

• I make time to exercise 3x per week

• I wear clothes that help me feel good

• I engage in healthy coping strategies

• I eat regularly and when I notice I am hungry

• I participate in fun activities (walking, swimming, dancing, sports)

• I get 7-8 hours of sleep per night

• I choose to rest /relax when sick or tired

• I attend preventative medical appointments (routine checkups, teeth cleaning, and screenings)

Psychological/Emotional Self-Care

• I take time off work and other obligations for mental/physical care

• I engage in hobbies that bring me joy

• I find time away from distractions (phone, email, social media, news, gossip)

• I learn new things unrelated to work or school

• I express my feelings in a healthy way (talking with mentor, journaling about my emotions, talk therapy with therapist/coach)

• I recognize my strengths and achievements

• I go on vacation or day trips to reward myself

• I do something comforting for myself (watch movies, long bath, sleep in)

• I engage in healthy coping when experiencing stress & difficult situations

• I talk to others about my challenges (and seek help when I am struggling)

• I am comfortable saying no/changing my mind about my commitments to others

• I engage in positive self-talk

• I do not engage in gossip or get involved in other people’s relationships (triangulate)

Social Self-Care

• I spend time with people I like & that value me

• I stay connected with friends & family

• I have stimulating conversations with others with differing viewpoints to learn

• I enjoy learning from and meeting new people

• I can spend time alone without a romantic partner

• I ask others for help when needed

• I engage in enjoyable activities with other people

• I have valuable connection time with my romantic partner

• I keep in touch with old friends

Spiritual Self-Care

• I spend time in nature

• I find time to quiet my mind and meditate daily

• I find time to pray/worship

• I have gratitude for people and experiences that give meaning to my life

• I act in accordance with my morals and values

• I aet aside time for thought and reflection

• I participate in a cause that is important to me

• I appreciate art/nature/reading that is impactful to me

Professional Self-Care

• I work to improve my professional skills

• I say “no” to excessive responsibilities

• I take on projects that are rewarding

• I learn new things related to my profession

• I make time to talk and build relationships

• I take breaks and keep a comfortable workspace

• I maintain a balance between work and personal time

• I advocate for fair pay and benefits

Change: Now that you have identified the areas that need your attention, you can begin to formulate a plan to ensure you are meeting your own needs in a healthy way. Once you begin to prioritize your needs you may experience resistance from others. You may experience difficult feelings when you make positive changes in your life and begin to put yourself first, especially if you have typically cared for others before yourself and that is ok. Remember, this is your journey to begin caring for you and only you know what you truly need. The following tips or ideas can help you jump start your self-care routine:

• Take time to do the things you enjoy. Think of activities that bring you joy. An activity can be as simple as reading a book, going for a walk with your dog, or planting flowers.

• Self-care also means taking care of yourself. This means getting enough sleep, eating regular meals, taking care of your personal hygiene, and anything else that will help you improve your mental and physical health.

• Make self-care a priority. Self-care is just as important as your other responsibilities. It is important to prioritize you. There will always be various tasks to complete, and it is important to allocate time for self-care.

• Set specific goals. It is difficult to follow through with goals if you are not specific about what you want to accomplish. For example, you may decide to focus on your physical self-care, and a goal would be to allocate walking for 45 minutes three times a week.

• Make self-care a habit. To feel the benefits of taking care of yourself you will need to choose activities that you can do often so that you will be successful and develop new neural connections. With practice, self-care will become a habit.

• Set healthy boundaries to protect yourself care. You do not need a reason to care for yourself, you are important. Your needs are as important as everyone else’s.

• Even a few minutes per day is better than none. Find 5 minutes to take a break and read an article, call a friend, walk outside for 10 minutes, or eat a healthy snack. Anything positive that you do for yourself is self-care!

• Self-care is a year-round activity. Keep up with self-care when you are tired, or do not feel well. You may need to cancel a commitment or get some extra sleep. Keep up with self-care when you are feeling big emotions so that you can help yourself through them. This might look like deep breathing, a 10-minute mindfulness meditation, journaling, exercising, or watching a funny video to help you shift and get back on track.

Grow: Your mind and body will thank you for the time and attention that you put into your mental and physical health. Once you learn how to care for yourself you can teach and inspire others to do the same.