During the pandemic, I took some time to process intentional and unintentional actions regarding self-care. I saw a trend of overworking, anxiousness, and inability to grant grace leaving footprints of imposter syndrome. I began to recognize that a lack of healthy management of self fostered burnout, withdrawal, and irritability. It was easy to look forward to the next thing and never really slow down to love on self, set boundaries, and move past the superwomen syndrome. I recall attending a women’s group over a decade ago and expressing being overwhelmed and exhausted, and the instructor stated, “Welcome to womanhood” Could this be life?

Fast Forward to March 2020, the world shut down, and my eyes became open. As a child, those simple things I once loved held so much value, such as a new meal, spending time with family, getting proper rest, going for a walk, journaling, dancing, saying no, being in nature and talking on the phone for hours became a love again. I begin to embrace the beauty of self-care. Self-care isn’t just something we do when we are tired. It’s a way of showing your mind, body, soul, and space, that you a worthy of love. I learned there are several different types of self-care, and honoring our needs with intention increased our daily functioning. Listed below are some examples of the different types of self-care.

Physical Self-Care -Attending to the needs of your body.
Examples of physical self-care:
Exercise
Bathing
Getting proper rest
Attending doctors appointments
Eating nourishing foods
Taking prescribed medications
Spa Day

Social self-care- Having relationships that are supportive, reliable, and trustworthy. Some examples of social self-care:
Accountability partner
Spending time with loved ones
Asking for assistance if needed
Networking
Attending groups/social outings

Spiritual self-care: Your values and beliefs that are essential to guiding your lifestyle.
Some examples of spiritual self-care:
Prayer
Meditation
Reflection in a journal
Church
Reading your bible
Connecting to nature

Emotional self-care-Increasing our awareness of our emotional wellbeing
Some examples of emotional self-care:
Honoring your emotions and truth
Giving yourself some grace and self-compassion
Setting boundaries
Stress management

Space Self-Care-Creating an environment where you can thrive, relax or feel free.
Some examples of space self-care
Cleaning your space
Creating a relaxing environment
Changing your scenario