2 Aug

Finding Your Happy Place.

Posted by kjnelan in Links, Self, Society | Tags :, , , , , |

Waterfall With Sunrays

With all that happens in the world, how do you take time for yourself?  Do you take time for yourself?

Self Care is much more than personal health maintenance [Wikipedia:Self_care], it is an assurance that you are looking after your own needs in a way that keeps you both healthy and happy.

Self Care regimens should include one or more of the following:

  1. Taking time out of a busy day to relax and breath; if everyday is busy then this should be done everyday.
  2. Making sure you are physically healthy.
  3. Making sure you are emotionally healthy.
  4. Making sure you are psychologically healthy.
    (The above three should really be considered as one large point, but they are equally valid independent of the others.)
  5. If you are a spiritual person, then you should also make sure you are spiritually healthy.
  6. Take time away from work (in other words do not go into, or bring home work from the office on your days off.)
  7. Continuing education (no matter what kind of class you take you should continue to learn and grow.)
  8. Making sure you are ethical in all things.

Innerworks has a wonderful chart of 60 ways to nurture the self located at: http://www.innerworkspublishing.com/news/vol1/selfcare.htm

One of the ways I used to take care of myself was by driving out of town once a week to a remote location.  The actual location didn’t much matter, but the driving and getting away from my normal surroundings was a very important routine which helped me decompress and let go of the stuff which may have come up during the week.  I would often find secluded spots in the mountains or near a lake, and I would spend hours just staring off into the beauty that surrounded me.  I let go of that routine a long time ago in favor of the more… harried …pace and have noticed a change within my core being, until my wife and I finally took a much needed vacation.  Three years without a vacation equals not good.  Add to that rarely taking days off, or on those days off doing nothing but chores.

The consequence for not taking care of the self can be devastating.

Find a way to ensure you are taking care of yourself.  Let go of bad habits and negative people which may surround you, and remember this: if you are ill or unable to take care of yourself, how can you expect to take care of someone else?

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