The term self-care gets bandied around a lot. I too talk about self-care and have written previously about self-care for mothers and in the workplace, and why self-care is both valuable and necessary. And whilst self-care is a concept used often, frequency of usage doesn't diminish its importance.

Self-care is looking after our emotional, physical and mental needs

What is self-care?

Before I go further, let’s quickly revisit what self-care is. At its simplest, self-care encourages us to look after our own emotional, physical and mental needs. Self-care is doing what nourishes you and includes activities undertaken to enhance energy, restore health and reduce stress.

Therefore, what self-care looks and feels like varies. It varies by situation, mood, time of day, time of the month, time of life and of course, person to person. The key is it’s about SELF i.e. you. It’s what nourishes, restores energy and helps YOU feel your best.

Why self-care?

Self-care is important because in order to show up as the type of people we prefer to be, we need to look after our well-being. And, if we have responsibility for looking after others, such as employees, children, a partner, parents or other loved ones, then self-care is even more vital so that we can care for others without burning out. Put simply, when we say yes to self-care, we enable ourselves to give more to others. We cannot help others if we ourselves are not operating from the best place.

Equally, when we are going through a time of significant change, whether personally or globally, self-care is necessary. It’s key to note that whether the change was wanted, like a positive career change, or unwanted, like a loss of work, self-care is just as important. The need for self-care and self-compassion at times of upheaval is crucial.

“It’s admirable and noble to care for others and place them first. But we must extend such deep investment, generosity, and compassion to ourselves as well.”

— Dallas Hartwig

Self-care and other responsibilities

Particularly as parents, we can often find ourselves saying yes to doing things for our family and putting our own needs down the list. When we prioritise self-care and nurturing ourselves, we are better able to support our family in the way we want to, without being a martyr or compromising our own well-being.

However, even when we are not experiencing challenges, self-care and making time for what that entails, can feel like an effort we cannot justify. As busy parents making time for self-care can feel like a low priority. One of our most popular excuses is we just don’t have time. However, daily self-care need not require a large time commitment.

Simply put, as busy people, we can feel like taking and making time for self-care is a luxury. It just isn't our top priority. Looking after ourselves, and showing kindness and compassion to ourselves is great in theory, but in our full and extremely busy lives, we struggle to find and dedicate time to self-care.

“Self-care is the first step towards making a massive impact on the world.”

— Mastin Kipp

Prioritise Self-care

Self-care doesn’t need to be a full day at the spa…

A high-achieving, incredibly busy client recently told me her self-care was something she scheduled as a once-a-quarter day at the spa. She said it was great for that day, but when pressed, she admitted that it didn’t really help her feel great for the other 90 odd days in the quarter. With some further exploration, she acknowledged the standing spa booking was her attempt at a ‘self-care catch up’ as she felt she didn’t have time for it the rest of the quarter. As we know, it’s better to keep up than catch up!

Self-care doesn’t have to be about taking a whole day out at a spa every few months.

Rather, it’s using pockets of time through our day and week to look after our needs. In this way, we are keeping up with looking after ourselves and ensuring we continue to be the sort of person we wish to be. Our overall health and well-being benefit from this approach too!

Whilst it is lovely to be able to take half a day, or a day, or even a whole weekend, to really care for ourselves, it's not always practical. Instead, taking a simpler approach, I am sure we can each find pockets of time during the day where we can reconnect and restore our energy levels.

Self-care snippets

To help you out, (and to be honest, to help myself too), I pondered how could we obtain some of the many benefits of self-care but in a shorter timeframe. Specifically, I wanted to come up with self-care activities that most of us could do without needing to completely overhaul our schedule, diary, and/or life. (Note, sometimes a complete intentional overhaul of our life is needed, and there is nothing wrong with that! If that's you, let’s chat).

I've included below a list of ideas to get you started. Before you start, you might also like to consider these two important questions when coming up with your own list.

What is good for my body?
What brings my soul joy?

Ideas to get you started

Here is a list of self-care items that can be done in 2, 5, 10 or 30 minutes. The majority are suggestions for when you have just a few minutes between Zoom meetings, or whilst the water boils for your cup of tea or tonight's dinner. Or, best of all, when you find yourself with a few spare minutes between other commitments. Instead of scrolling through social media, try one of these ideas to get the most benefit from your precious few minutes.

If you only have 2 minutes

Take a series of deep, calming breaths. Breathe in for the count of 3, hold it for the count of 3 and then breathe out for 3. Repeat.
Mindfully rub a scented cream or lotion into your hands. Enjoy the scent and the tactile feeling of the lotion as it absorbs into your skin.
Light a scented candle. Enjoy the wafting fragrance and gaze into the flame.
Listen to your favourite song or piece of music that makes your heart leap with joy. (The piece of music or song most likely goes for longer than 2 minutes, but even 2 minutes of our favourite piece of music can restore our sense of calm and wellbeing.)

If you have 5 minutes

Any of the above, as well as;

Move your body by doing some gentle stretching. As you stretch your muscles, feel the movement and increased blood flow reinvigorate your body.
Complete a 5-minute meditation. Meditate either in silence on your own, or using a guided meditation. (Many apps provide free guided meditations to help. Try a few to find one you like).
Get outside and walk on the grass. If your location and the weather permits, slip your shoes off and walk barefoot, enjoying the feeling of the blades of grass tickling your toes.
List 3 things for which you are truly grateful. Write down these 3 things in a journal or notebook, or just think about them. Even thinking about what you are grateful for can boost your sense of well-being.
Laugh. Watch a YouTube video or listen to a funny podcast - something you know will have you laughing out loud. And even better if it can be a true belly laugh. Humour is one of the best ways to lift our energy and nurture our souls.
Listen to some happy tunes. Music encourages an emotional response, so choose tunes you know will make you feel good. This is my go to playlist.

If you have 10 minutes

quick journalling can be a self-care activity

Any of the above, as well as;

Savour a hot cup of tea or your beverage of choice. The key is in taking the time to savour it; truly taste the flavours and enjoy the experience.
Take a 10-minute nap. A power nap has been proven to recharge your energy levels, and so is perfect when you need to show some care for yourself but have limited time.
Journal for 10 minutes to capture and explore your thoughts and feelings. My Daily Journal Prompts are free and a great way to get started.
Call a loved one or friend to let them know you appreciate them. Sharing our appreciation for others boosts our sense of gratitude as well as enhancing the appreciation we have for ourselves. Plus, you'll connect with someone you love and help them feel better too!
Explore a new habit that could lead to a revised morning or evening routine. Just 10 minutes can be perfect to identify and start some simple, daily habits to provide ongoing benefits.

If you have 30 minutes

Any of the above, as well as;

Reading a book is a great self-care activity

Read a book! Escaping into a novel or reading an inspiring non-fiction book is ideal self-care. Reading fosters creativity, learning, and imagination - all things that can help us feel connected to ourselves.
Start writing a bucket list, or a dreams list. By dreaming of and planning things you want to do in the future, you are telling yourself that you value your own happiness, which is a form of self-love and self-care. Plus, as a bonus, after writing a bucket list, you will feel inspired and motivated.
Even if you can’t travel right now, start planning your next trip or weekend away. Research shows the act of planning and looking forward to a break is just as valuable for our well-being as the actual break!
Contemplate how you want to feel, and start designing your season. By intentionally examining how you want to feel, and the actions that will help you achieve that, you focus on self-care in the longer term. Which is a powerful self-love and self-care gift for your future self, as well as a fun exercise now.
Experience awe. Psychologists define awe as the wonder we feel when we encounter something powerful that we can’t easily explain. Feeling awe reconnects us to our place in the universe, and shifts our perspective, lowering our heart rate and calming our emotions. Which in challenging times, is ideal self-care! We often experience this in nature; the majesty of mountains, the beauty of the sunrise. But we can also experience it when we see an act of great kindness, or admire the beauty of intricate details on something small, like an exquisite flower or art. Experience awe in just 30 minutes by going on an awe walk and admiring the everyday beauty all around you, such as the way the sun shining through the trees highlights aspects of the path, the gentle hum of the bees, or the birdsong coming from the trees as you stroll past.
Tackle a decluttering project. Yes, I know, decluttering sounds like work, not self-care. However, the benefits of decluttering are clarity, confidence, and a greater feeling of calm both in your home environment, as well as in yourself. Which to me, sounds and feels like self-care!

Self-care can be quick

As you can see from the above suggestions, taking a few minutes and spending them actively doing something for yourself, could be a great way to boost your self-care habits. As people who are busy with work, family, and all the other commitments we have, giving ourselves a few minutes at various times of day could be a positive step towards finding time for self-care in times of change.

Self-care, and making time for self-care, are especially important in challenging times when looking after ourselves ensures we are better able to show up as the kind, caring people we prefer to be.

I am not implying that small windows of time replace the need for larger portions of self-care time. Far from it. However, small moments dedicated to caring actions can be valuable to ensure we maintain a sense of self, our equilibrium and connection to our soul and purpose.

In these challenging times, that sounds pretty good. And even better, knowing I can give myself small snippets of self-care scattered throughout my busy day sounds great, especially as we move through this tumultuous time of global change.

Sometimes we need more

Self-care is terrific, but sometimes we need a more specific, tailored approach to increase our clarity and confidence and enhance our feeling of calm. And that’s where working with a coach (that’s me!) comes in. With one-on-one individual support, coaching can make all the difference when you are either experiencing a time of change or wanting to feel clear and confident in your career, business, and life.

Coaching starts with a complimentary consult so together we can determine if coaching is right for you. Book your complimentary consult here.

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