Self-care has become a priority in today's times.
Gone are the days when self-care was equated with vacations, massages, spa sessions, afternoons at a beauty salon or expensive makeup products with an aggrandizing claim "You're worth it!".
Self-care isn't something we do once in a while to catch a break from life.
Self-care is intertwined with life - those daily habits that boost our physical, mental and spiritual well-being.
Self-care is caring for one's body, mind and soul.
When we start compromising on our self-care, it impacts the quality of our life on multiple levels.
For eg,
Let's say, I jot down the list of my self-care activities and this list comes up to 10 items.
As days and weeks pass by, I'm unable to meet these 10 items every day. Because of conflicting priorities and other reasons, I end up checking off barely 2-3 items per day. The self-care debt starts to build up slowly.
Once it reaches a certain threshold, this debt affects our body, mind and soul. Firstly, it starts with guilt and self-criticism and then slowly resentment and anger join the party. And as a finale, self-pity enters the stage and we end up feeling helpless.
How to avoid getting into this state?
First, list down your absolute, non-negotiables when it comes to self-care. This is something only you can define.
Maintain a habit tracker with this list.
Check off the list at the end of each day.
Review this list along with the checked-off items at the end of each week.
Make sure the self-care debt doesn't build up.
Here's a snippet of my list that you could refer to as a starting point:
- 30 min of Yoga practice
- Sun exposure - walk on the terrace
- 30 min in reading a book
- 15 min in writing my thoughts
- Evening Pooja and chanting shlokas
- Balanced, home-cooked meals
- Sipping a cup of tea slowly without any disturbance
- Dinner by 7 PM
- 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep
P.S. Inspiration for this post came up while conversing with my soul friend Sakthi :-)