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Self-care is more often than not sold to us through bath bombs, hot chocolate sets, spa days or new shoes. Little “escapes” from reality that are necessary every so often to get away from whatever is stressing you out or making you feel low. So we take a day where we turn our phone off, have a bath, watch a movie and pamper ourselves. Then we say “I feel so much better” and the next morning we’re back to the same routine that put us in the position to mean it was necessary to take a self-care day.
What I think is true self-care, is not needing to take “self-care days”, but rather building a life where you take care of yourself enough that you don’t feel it necessary to escape from it to maintain sanity. You spend time with people who make you feel good about yourself. You treat yourself often, whether that be buying your favourite chocolate on the way home from work or watching your favourite TV show. You don’t punish yourself for missing a gym class. You listen to your needs.
Build a life where you take care of yourself enough day by day that you don’t let yourself get to breaking point and then decide to cram all of that self-care into one day. If you’re training for a race you can’t just cram in all the training you should have been doing for months into one day and expect yourself to be fine, it’s completely unrealistic. Instead you need to undergo regular training that you fit into your regular schedule. That is much like self-care. Build self-care into your schedule so it becomes a normal, regular thing so you don’t let yourself reach breaking point.
So attend that regular yoga class. Have “Sunday Sundaes” every Sunday with your boyfriend. Have regular coffee dates with the people that make you feel good. Pick up that book you’ve been saving for holiday and read it now.
It’s never too late to take care of yourself. Caring for yourself should be the most loyal and long-term relationship you will ever have.
Love, Alice xxx