How to Stop Failing at Self-Care



Are you failing with self-care? Maybe you really are too busy. Maybe you are dragging yourself around sick, and emotionally circling the drain, and having low energy and no inspiration. Nothing is calling you.

First thing is to figure out if you are emotionally plugged up.
Have you had a loss, or trauma in the last 6 months? Are you facing some hard things emotionally? It is possible that your draggy feeling has some grief hidden in there.

Self-care recovery can be done in baby steps. Crawl back into bed. Take out a journal. Ask yourself about your grief or loss. What has been emotionally hard? Write about it. Make contact with your feelings. Read your journal, writing to yourself. You have to get emotionally truthful with yourself and understand how you are feeling.
  

When you struggle with self-care, it usually means you are struggling with some other things.


While you are in bed journaling, I want you to recover from whatever cold or body injury you have. Get more rest. Stop doing. Stop running around. Stop asking so much of yourself. Your body needs to recover. Rest is the most underrated medicine. Read a novel, find some interesting music to listen to.  Rest is great for so many things and is a wonderful self-care tool. Catch up on your sleep.

 Getting on track with self-care:


After you have rested, caught up on sleep, eaten well, you can take baby steps to start moving. This can be walking, going to a gentle yoga class. Sometimes joining an exercise class is helpful because they give you the structure. You don’t have to think about it.

Do things that make you happy and give you joy. This is a journal practice to help you: Make a list of 50 things you like to do. Write it as fast as you can. It’s ok to repeat yourself on your fast 50 list. Then read your 50 list and circle only the things that really are self-care just for you - (usually all kinds of to-do stuff pops up, but we are not looking for your to-do list). Only circle the self-care ideas. Anything surprising pop-up?
Do those circled things that are just for you.




I learned that creativity is an essential part of my self-care, playing music, writing/ journaling, and knitting. Reading is also an instant self-care feeder. There are so many choices to read, I keep my kindle loaded at all times and it is always with me.


Try new things: 


If you are not feeling self-care from your old activities, change it up. Learn something new. Try something outside the box. Just follow your curiosity and see where your heart leads. My heart led me to 2-stepping, SoulCollage, cross-country skiing, etc.

Self-care is a process of discovery. Let your self-care surprise you. I look forward to hearing about your discoveries. Send me an update on what works for you.

By practicing self-care, I have created a sanctuary, that I am always in. My sanctuary of self-care helps on the hard days.