3 Simple Self-Care Practices For You in This September, Self-Care Awareness Month
Self-care is a fairly common topic that seems to allude to many people. While most people know what self-care is, few understand how to implement self-care tips into their own lives. So, what exactly is self-care, how can it improve your life, and what simple practices should you try out? Read on to learn more about practical self-care tips for you.
What is self-care?
You might have seen the month of September is being heralded as the self-care awareness month. What are your thoughts about the concept of a self-care awareness month?
I share about it because if you are like me you might think having a full month focused on on self-care may actually get us practicing a lot more positive self-care practices within self-care awareness month. Would you agree? If you are reading this, will it boost your own practices this month?
Essentially, self-care means actively taking time to improve and preserve good health. The term is generally used to refer to practicing wellness routines.
Self-care practices can be further broken down into a few major classifications.
These include emotional, physical, and spiritual self-care or mind, body, and spirt. Practices like positive affirmations and avoiding stress cater to your emotional well-being while prioritizing sleep, exercise, and a healthy diet improves your physical health. Of course, the benefits of some of these practices improve several aspects of your being.
Self-care doesn’t automatically mean going to the doctor. Sure, visiting a healthcare service provider is part of your overall self-care, but there are other avenues to the practice. In short, you want to evaluate and implement healthy practices while eliminating major stress factors in your life.
Advantages of self-care practices
Generally, a lot of emphasis is put on cultivating healthy self-care tips, especially during September. However, these practices should be common as they benefit you in numerous ways. Some of the clear-cut benefits of self-care tips and practices include;
- Healthy relationships with friends and family
- Improved self-esteem and confidence
- Reduced risk of developing countless illnesses
- Improved physical health and wellness
- Reduced stress and anxiety
Practical self-care practices
1. Have 15 minutes to yourself every day
No one seems to ever have enough time to accomplish everything we want. Many people try to cram all they can into a single day and neglect to look after themselves.
A key point to note and really understand is… these tasks and responsibilities need a healthy you. For example, sickness and stress can significantly lower your productivity.
I know over the summer I have been pushing myself a bit and I am now paying for it. Worse, it is affecting my parenting as I deal with my son(s) when I am a bit stressed.
Regardless of how busy you are, ensure you find some time for yourself. You can start by taking 15 minutes and doing something relaxing. This will invigorate you to get back to your tasks while offering much-needed relief.
This time should be exclusively yours and customized to what you like. While you can adjust the period based on your schedule and business, ensure you give yourself at let 15 minutes daily.
I always do 10-15 minutes minimum for meditation daily, and sometimes I like to add 10-20 minutes of quite reading time. Sometimes I listen to music during the day or I’ll squeeze in some time in the evening watching a show when things are settled down after the kids are in bed.
2. Gradually improve your diet
Food is a basic necessity for all living beings. And while you might not have a choice regarding whether you eat or not, you certainly have control over what to eat.
Although a basic necessity of life, many people still struggle with having a balanced diet. Either you’re running late and can only do a snack or maybe you’re too tired to prepare something.
No matter how busy you are or how big your to-do list is, prioritizing a healthy and balanced diet is an essential part of self-care. As the adage goes, you are what you eat. Now, a drastic dietary change is often unsustainable.
The best approach is to focus on improving one aspect of your diet and watch the change. For example, if you realize you eat too much junk food and/or fast food, you can substitute an unhealthy snack with a healthy one. With time, grow these practices to a point where you can enjoy good healthy food constantly.
I’ve been trying to add things like eating mixed nut, carrot sticks or sweet peppers to my lunch replacing chips and/or other typical junky snack stuff. Find something small that you can stick to.
3. Prioritize quality sleep
It’s hard to find time to sleep when there’s always something nudging you awake. Whether it’s your phone, a popular tv show, or insomnia, most people nowadays report finding it hard to get quality sleep.
The worst bit about this is sleep is one of the integral body functions. While not everything about sleep is understood, it is clear that enough rest improves your body and mind in multiple ways.
Find a rest schedule that works for you. Nonetheless, ensure you get regular quality sleep every day. This will improve your physical, psychological, emotional, and social lives.
Ultimately, the benefits of self-care are evident. Although September is self-care awareness month, and it may be a good time for starting new self-care practice, remember to evaluate the practices you use currently.
Maybe refine or improve some of them to easily level up your life. Every day should be your self-care day and we do not want to neglect the rest of the year just to celebrate self-care awareness month, am I right?