Self-Care September

Happy Self-Love Sunday my lovely readers!

Happy September! I hope that this month is filled with blessings, prosperity, and lots of wonderful experiences. September is a month dedicated to many topics such as: self-awareness, self-improvement and one of my favorite self-care. So in honor of September and our weekly self-love Sunday’s, today’s topic is dedicated to self-care.

The English Oxford Dictionary defines self-care as “the practice of taking an active role in protecting one’s own well-being and happiness, in particular during periods of stress.” But how many of us actively participate in self-care? Actively means that we are taking care of ourselves even when we aren’t experiencing stress or some extreme situation. We may think that we do, but we don’t. We only address self-care when we are reminded that it’s important. I am guilty of this as well. However, I feel it’s important to discuss self-care, why it’s important & why we should all work to actively participate in self-care at all times.

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I’ve previously discussed self-care, but never dedicated a full blog to it. And I was very inspired by all of the current events of the world, my personal experiences & self-love, so I figured why not discuss it. A majority of individuals would state that they take care of themselves daily. Most people participate in the basics of self-care such: going through a morning hygiene routine, eating throughout the day, and ending the night with well-needed rest. So, yes I believe participate in actions of caring for their physical self. But those few things listed above aren’t the only to care for yourself. Are you caring for your mental, spiritual, and emotional well-being every day, too?

Many factors are involved in the true act of self-care. Yes, taking care of our physical attributes is important, but so is caring for the other parts of ourselves, especially those that feel & hurt. Sometimes as humans we box up emotions and displace them, not realizing that as we continuously do this our emotions pile up and more than likely can lead to a breakdown or something worse. Therefore, just as you spend time washing your face and feeding your body with physical food, you must also ensure that you spend time on your spiritual, mental, and emotional self by mediating, reading, praying, or whatever works best for you to ensure your well-being. This can also look like removing some sort of negativity or hurt out of your life or even changing your behavior for the greater good that will follow. It’s one thing to think or even say that you take of yourself, but it’s another thing to actively do so. And I want us all to take care of ourselves, because we are all important!

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Personally, I love to help others and I can get so caught up that I don’t always take care of my emotional, spiritual, or mental life. I need to work on actively ensuring that I am taking care of myself. Because sometimes I deal with battles that I don’t even speak on. I bury them in order to help others and can become overwhelmed and frustrated. But the same care I give to others, I must make sure to give to myself. And this goes for you all too. It’s okay to be that rock for your friends or others, but just make sure that you are being that same rock for yourself. And if you need some time for you, take it! Do not feel guilty or less than, because self-care is NOT selfish. Like I previously stated, we are all important. And sometimes the best person to realize your importance is you, that way you’ll be purposeful with your acts and intentions of self-care!

On this Self-Love Sunday, I challenge you all to actively participate in self-care. We can start during this month of September and continue on throughout the rest of the year, to next year, and the years to follow. Below are some nice infographics about ways to self-care. And if you feel you are taking care of yourself, but it’s not enough, PLEASE feel free to reach out to me & I will offer any guidance that I can. We all need to be on this journey of self-care. So just make sure you are ever so often consciously asking, am I actively caring for myself?

Love J.A.