Necessity of Self-Care
Making the case to take care of yourself may sound superfluous at best, at worst deemed selfish and lazy. Notable excuses also include lack of time, energy, and resources to take care of oneself, setting up a cycle of lackluster health and overall wellbeing. Sometimes it is forced upon us; when we are ill and want to ‘recover’ we turn to natural foods, more rest, prioritizing healing over spreading ourselves too thin.
Keeping ourselves healthy is the number one priority, especially this season when we must protect our immune systems, stress levels and sanity even more. Taking care of others is impossible if we are not taking care of ourselves, it is more self-preservation than self-ish.
When everything and everyone demands attention, basic needs must still be met; adequate sleep, exercise, healthy meals, plenty of water, attempts to lower stress. The award for the most self-sacrifice is not one worth winning. Carving out time for ourselves and saying no to unrealistic expectations should not be negotiable. Without our health what are we even accomplishing anyway?
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a part of our psyche, air and water, shelter, food, sleep are the necessary physiological basics. While acupuncture, going for a run, meditating or being social do not sound like part of the pyramid, maybe they should be. When you start to examine how you allocate your time, you soon realize that an hour less scrolling is an hour of restorative body work, a surf session, spending time in nature. There is time, we must be deliberate and proactive about how we spend it. The same case can be made for resources and energy needed to take care of ourselves; this exists if we choose to allocate it to ourselves.
If it is difficult to conceptualize putting yourself first, imagine the burden on others when you do not. They may be taking care of you, or you may be hindered from taking care of others if you are not well. We are in many ways all connected, and if we are all taking time for self-care, collectively we are healthier. Luckily, we have excellent healers and care takers all around us if we look, and they need not be called in for an emergency or when are so burnt out we finally seek them. Acupuncture with Clayton Shiu or Bettina Schuler, body work with Bailey Thompson, Yoga classes at Mandala, nourishing food at Naturally Good are just a few. Winter is an excellent time to check in, take the initiative and start building the habits to promote longevity and health. Cheers!