Be Kind to Yourself: Self-Care Tips for Women
Self-care is a huge part of happiness and life satisfaction. Approximately 41% of people say that they don’t have the time for self-care, most of them being women. As women, we are notoriously bad at taking the time to look after ourselves, especially our emotional and mental sides. This can cause stress, demotivation, and even burnout. Looking after yourself should not be a want, it should be a fundamental need.
The time has come for you to be the best version of you, and it all starts with self-care!
What is Self-Care?
Self-care is about looking after yourself without the intervention of external forces and influences. It is about actively deciding about how you will live your life in these five base areas:
- Physical
- Emotional
- Psychological
- Spiritual
- Professional
Self-care encompasses making good decisions to improve your quality of life, self-monitoring, and self-management. It also includes practicing responsibility, taking time to pursue your interests and passions, and avoiding unhealthy lifestyle choices.
How To Practice Self-Care
Practicing self-care means taking control of your life. By fulfilling your needs and desires you can achieve this. Also, by being kind to yourself while maintaining a sense of discipline. It’s not ‘kindness’ to allow yourself to binge eat a whole cake then feel sickly afterwards. It’s all about balance. You need to:
- Find ways to love yourself—acknowledge the things you love about yourself out loud.
- Build a support system—these are the people who will believe in you and motivate you to keep going when you waver.
- Set boundaries—make your limits known.
- Better your health—focus on maintaining a healthy body by eating nutritiously, sleeping well, and exercising often.
- Maintain your mental health—take time out for yourself. Take a relaxing bath with some oils, read a book, or take a walk in nature; do what de-stresses and calms you.
- Treat yourself like a friend—we often treat others better than we treat ourselves. By treating yourself as a friend, you are treating yourself with love and kindness.
These self-care tips will help you achieve a more fulfilled life.
Self-Care Is Not Selfish
Self-care is all about looking after yourself to promote longevity and happiness. So why do we treat practicing self-care as if it were a sin? Why do women feel guilty about wanting to protect and nurture our mind, body, and soul?
Self-care is all about meeting your needs. As women, we are taught to constantly put the needs of others ahead of our own. We are raised to be the caretakers. We are not usually the ones being taken care of. As such, we often forget to look after ourselves. We feel wrong for making ourselves a priority because it feels as if we’re taking time away from others.
While it may be difficult to overcome at first, that feeling of guilt will soon pass as you realize you can’t look after others without first looking after yourself.
In Summary
Self-care should form a fundamental part of your daily life. Make the regular practice of self-care a habit. Your life will instantly grow more beautiful, happier, and much calmer.
Check this great worksheet on practicing self-care and begin making yourself a priority today.