Self Care Saturday...Say What?

By Hopewell Volunteer Jen Jones

As I sit here sipping my morning tea, a ritual I enjoy as part of a very layered approach to self care, I thought I would weigh in on the self care movement and what I think it should look a little bit more like.

I’ve heard (and used myself) the term Self Care Sunday. The title of this blog post in itself is a little tongue in cheek reference to the use of it. I think it’s amazing that we are starting to develop our idea of taking care of ourselves. We truly can’t serve from empty cups, but I think by labelling it as a “Sunday” thing is not truly the answer. Now some may argue that it isn’t just a Sunday thing but that on Sundays we should make a point to focus on our self care, but I truly believe that’s similar to giving ourselves a cheat day in dieting. If we think that we should feel guilty for honouring our need for self care another day of the week, we aren’t able to truly honour our needs in the present moment. So, let’s make it a self care year/life/practice and find ways to build in self care when we need it. It might not be a full day of self care (and if you are a busy momma, I’m sure it would be harder to do that anyways), but even a small action like having a tea or a coffee and fully enjoying that moment can make a huge difference in your state of mind.

To my next point, self care has really been given the reputation of being about spa days and treatments, decadent meals, weekend getaways, etc. I don’t think that self care can’t be that, but it truly is sooo much more than that. In fact, the phrase itself implies taking care of oneself. And how should we do that? Truthbomb- by taking care of ourselves. This means showing up for ourself and doing what needs to get done to live happy lives. Moving our bodies in ways that feel good, eating food that makes us feel energetic and happy, getting sleep when we can and doing the things we need to do to not feel anxious. It means letting go of perfection and anxiety that leave us turning to food, alcohol, Netflix binges, etc etc to cope. It also means being kind to ourselves when we are struggling to do one of these things and keep on keeping on. Again, I know that it’s easy to make excuses for not taking care of oneself, but we need to start saying “I don’t prioritize that” instead of “I don’t have time for that” and if that feels uncomfortable applying to something in our lives, start finding a way to make it a priority. I know you can do it!

So, until next time, enjoy showing up for yourself and taking care of you, because it is the only one of you there is!

Xoxo Jen

If you liked Jen's post, you can follow her at her blog https://fitgirlselfloveadvocate.wordpress.com/