Man, the ideas for self-care are just flowing right now. I’m gonna start a tag for this, and go back to search out my old posts that are relevant.
Why do self-care? Because no one can take care of you like you can. Because it’s the purest form of personal renewal and recovery. Because it feels damn good.
Yesterday I worked at home and spent the day on sofa. When I quit working at 5 p.m. I knew I had to do something different. Normally I head for the kitchen, but I didn’t want to do that, because I wasn’t hungry.
I went upstairs to check on the kid. Her braces were just adjusted, and the poor thing was in real pain. She didn’t need or want anything. What now? Bath? No. Food? No. Exercise? No. Then I thought, “If I could do anything I want right now, what would it be?”
The answer was go to bed and lie down for a while. That answer slightly shocked me since I hadn’t hardly moved all day long. But it was my answer, so I did it. I planned to stay there until DH got home, so he would come upstairs and see both of his girls in bed, needing TLC. Geez, I never knew I was so manipulative.
OK, to bed. Nice time, doze a little. After an hour, I was done. DH was not home yet, but I had no desire to manipulate him any more, so I got up. He felt like going out to dinner, so we grabbed a hamburger at a local joint. Good meal, good evening. Went to bed early and slept well. Good self-care.
On the weight front, I was rather convinced that the dinner would show a large weight gain the next day, but when I weighed myself today, no problem. A little lower than last week, as a matter of fact.
I really like how you are incorporating self-care into your life now. I have been pondering the subject since I first noticed you writing about it. I am not sure I KNOW exactly how to take care of myself, what I need… etc. I definitely love my times watching TV and playing around on the internet, but is that my self care?
I really believe exercise is going to be self-care for me. I have such a hard time getting my butt OUT there. I also believe you shouldn’t force it when you really don’t feel like it (such as when you allowed yourself not to go swimming)… but I think I’ve been convincing myself I ‘truly don’t feel like it’ every day for weeks now.
I would like to go out for a walk in the park today. Life gets in the way though. I have 4-5 loads of laundry to do today as well as grocery shopping. I would also like to see my dad for lunch.
How do I do it all? The exercise is the first thing I knock off the list to make enough time. There is something NOT very self-care-like about that choice.
I need to realize I can finish up another 2 - 3 loads of laundry after boyfriend comes home in the evening, and that would be okay.
What I’ve found out in the last couple of weeks is that self-care can be almost anything, and we get to decide for ourselves. I got up at 3 a.m. the other day and did dishes, and it was real self-care. I got such pleasure from cleaning those little things, and felt a strong sense of accomplishment. It was remarkable how I turned insomnia into a positive experience for myself.
I thought that exercise “must” become one of my self-care activities, but now I know that it’s not one at the moment. It has been in the past, particularly with aquajogging. Currently, though, it’s a “should.” But I trust myself to recognize it when it comes around again.
Maybe instead of “Do I feel like exercising?” ask, “What do I prefer at this moment - gentle movement or rest?” and honor that. One day you’ll go the other way too.
See? You’ve already got a great idea about the laundry. The other ideas will keep flowing. Don’t worry.