A while back – maybe earlier this year, maybe before that – I started to notice is that there seems to be some confusion about what self care really is.
Self care includes any intentional actions you take to care for your physical, mental and emotional health.
It’s as simple as that, which means it doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive, and it doesn’t have to look a certain way.
(The paragraph above that’s in bold is a definition I came across in a pdf put out by the Student Affairs department at the University of Kentucky.)
Self-care will vary from person to person – and for any one person, it will be different at different times.
Self care can mean being mindful of your diet, getting some exercise, getting enough sleep. It can be going to a meet-up on a favorite topic or spending time at a church service.
It can be cuddling with a special person or pet, listening to music, taking a long hot shower, relaxing in a candle-lit room, dancing for a few minutes in your kitchen, going to a spa, painting your nails, getting your hands dirty in the soil.
It can be sitting on a beach, or under a tree, or on the floor of your bedroom as you read a book or color a mandala.
The list is endless. It can be any or all of those things – and so much more.
And some things for self care involve money…
But there are so many self-care practices and activities that do not.
Self-care is caring for YOU. It’s doing something that tends to you and what you need (on any/all levels – physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually).
And there’s no shame involved in caring for and tending to yourself.
No one can give from an empty well, no one can run on fumes, no one can be a constant light without burning out.
Self care doesn’t have to be hard.
It doesn’t have to be luxurious.
It doesn’t have to take loads of time.
Self care can be as simple as pausing throughout your day, relaxing your shoulders, and taking a few breaths.
Self care is anything that involves “any intentional actions you take to care for your physical, mental and emotional health.”
That’s what self care really is.
Ginger Simpson White 