You have heard it before, probably numerous times, you cannot truly help others if you do not first help yourself. Although this statement is accurate, too many people do not follow through with meeting their own needs. This may be one reason for the increases in physical and mental health disorders among Americans.
Taking specific steps to improve your overall health is called self-care. It means you are here, in the present, listening to the needs of your body and mind and meeting those needs so that you can be your best in all areas of your personal, professional, and social lives. It means being kind to yourself.
Self-care is one of the most selfless things you can do.
Think about it. If you are living with untreated depression, your symptoms do not allow you to be as happy and energetic as your children need you to be. If you have untreated depression and untreated arthritis, you struggle with sadness, fatigue, swelling, and pain in your joints. You cannot give your very best to the elderly parent you care for daily.
The importance of self-care cannot be stressed enough. Below, you can find more information on why self-care is essential for your mental, physical, spiritual, professional, and social components of life.
Psychological Self-Care
According to Mental Health America, psychological health is worsening across America. They report 9.7% of youth have severe major depression, and 19% of Americans are experiencing mental illness, equaling over 47 million. The most alarming statistics reported are that 60% of the youth and nearly 24% of adults with mental illness do not receive treatments.
Psychological self-care means doing what it takes to keep your mind functioning at its best. Positive mental health benefits include reduced anxiety, more happy days, better concentration and focus, less irritability, a boost in self-esteem, increased energy, better sleep, and other symptoms associated with a specific psychological disorder reduced or eliminated.
Give your brain what it needs to help all other parts of the body function properly. There is no doubt that mental health influences physical health and vice versa.
Physical Self-Care
How you feel physically influences your mood. Whether it’s a headache you know will subside in a day, a chronic disease, or a significant injury that takes months to recover, your mental health is negatively affected. Pain on any level decreases mood and psychological functioning.
Harvard Health reports that there are over 600,000 deaths to heart disease, 580,000 due to cancer, 149.000 due to lung disease, 76,000 due to diabetes each year. Also, obesity is the top health concern in America.
Small changes in your daily routine to support positive physical health can lead to significant benefits. The goal is to increase activities that boost serotonin production in the brain. Serotonin is the neurotransmitter or chemical most associated with depression and anxiety when levels are low.
Exercising, watching comedies, spending time with positive friends, and creating a unique, healthy diet plan that introduces vitamin-rich foods to each meal.
Spiritual Self-Care
There is a reason Alcoholics Anonymous help those in recovery form a relationship with a higher power. Having a spiritual connection gives you hope and a feeling that something greater is guiding your life. Researchers have studied spirituality in relation to illnesses and have found those who practice spiritual self-care have more positive outcomes.
You can practice spiritual self-care by taking time each day to meditate or pray. You can also talk to a spiritual leader or counselor, read or listen to inspirational messages, or attend spiritually-based groups.
Professional Self-Care
According to a Gartner study, nearly half of American workers surveyed were dissatisfied with their job. Being unhappy at work can mean you don’t get along with coworkers or your boss. It can also mean you feel underpaid, underappreciated, overworked, or underutilized. These feelings can lead to fights among staff, tardiness or absences, unfinished projects, unmet deadlines, and even an increase of negative coping skills, like hitting happy hour.
You spend most of your day as a professional. If you are unhappy for eight to ten hours, the other areas of your life will be affected. Misplaced aggression is a typical response. For example, you are angry with your boss, but you cannot yell at your boss. Instead, when you get home, you take your anger out on the family dog.
If you are unhappy at work, figure out why and make changes. For some, this may mean a conversation with the boss. For others, it could mean finding a new job.
Professional self-care means saying no to overtime when you already feel tired. It means having a set stopping and starting point each day and sticking with it. It means no calls to your children telling them you will be late getting home once again.
Social Self-Care
Most people want to fit in socially. It’s normal to want to make others happy. When you put your health and happiness below pleasing others, you will have a problem.
Every day it seems like someone is asking you for something, right? Friends want to meet for dinner. Schools need a volunteer. Churches want you to attend study groups. Family members need you to run errands.
Saying “yes” is the first response for many because they want to avoid displeasing people they respect or love. More yeses mean less time for self-care, which can lead to impaired social relationships, defeating the purpose of why you said “yes” in the first place.
Final Tips for Taking Care of Yourself
You can start implementing self-care actions today to improve your overall well-being. Here are some tips for taking care of your psychological, physical, spiritual, professional, and social health:
Individual or group counseling
Do something you enjoy every day
Practice good sleep hygiene
Take a break from technology
Accept compliments
Learn a new skill
Get an annual physical exam with blood work
Get creative with self-care. If it makes you feel good mentally, physically, and spiritually, do it. You deserve it.