Ways to Celebrate Self Care Day
July 24 is International Self Care Day! What does self-care mean to you? Celebrating Self-Care Day can involve a variety of meaningful activities such as:
- having a relaxing spa day
- preparing nutritious meals
- practicing mindfulness or meditation
- taking a nature walk
- enjoying a favorite hobby
- disconnecting from electronics
- journaling or writing things down that you are grateful for
- scheduling a wellness treatment
- dedicating time to rest and reflect
The key is to prioritize activities that nurture your mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Self-care, the practice of taking care of oneself, may be a phrase you have heard used a lot more recently. Your health care provider may have even recommended you incorporate this habit consistently into your life.
Those of us who care for others often may need to be nudged to care for ourselves. This includes informal caregivers – people taking care of parents, siblings, or children- and can also be professional caregivers- such as first responders, therapists, clinicians, social workers and teachers.
Self-Care Day is a reminder to reflect on how you take care of yourself
How do you think you are doing at meeting your basic needs and beyond?
Self-care encompasses fundamental physical needs like brushing your teeth, combing your hair, eating regularly and getting enough good quality sleep.
It also can include addressing mental health needs. Exercises like journaling and listening to music help you better attune to yourself and relax a little bit more.
What are activities that bring you joy that you would like to incorporate into your life more?
What do you feel you want to focus on more for yourself?
Social and spiritual needs also deserve tending. Would you benefit from checking in with a supportive friend? Going out in nature?
How can you elicit support from your loved ones? What are the ways you can connect with your community?
It is natural to often take an all or nothing approach to changes in habits, but these are things that can be slipped into your daily routine such as thinking of three things you are grateful for every morning while you are getting dressed.
Also, there will be some days where we are great at checking with ourselves and other days, we may realize we are more on autopilot. That can happen, and that is OK.
Engaging in therapy is a form of self-care. A therapist can help you formulate goals for yourself and help you stay attuned to yourself and meet your own needs day to day.
If you are interested in the nuances and many different perspectives on self-care, here are some resources on the topic: