Physical Self-Care
This type of self-care focuses on how we will treat the body. We often treat our bodies in both positive and negative ways and must strive to find the right balance. These are the messages our body sends to our brain to tell us what we need. If my body feels sore, I may need to stretch it. On the other hand, if it feels groggy, I may need to take a quick walk to get my heart pumping. The following ideas are compiled from conversations I have had with others in my life.
- Going to the gym
- Run
- Meditation
- Dance party
- Sleep
- Mindful Eating
- Take a nap
- Sleep Early
- Go on a walk
- Go for a bike ride
- Nature walks
- Take a shower or bath
- Lemon Squeezers.
- You breathe in, tense up your body parts (not too hard), hold this for about 5-10 seconds, concentrate, and breathe out.
- Listen to your body
- Stretch
- Eat some of your favorite snacks
- Skin care
- Yoga
- Go for a drive
- Green Tea
- Curl up in Bed
- Lay in the Grass
- Feel the sun and the breeze
- Gardening
- Beautify yourself (dressing up, wearing makeup, manicures, pedicures, etc…)
Mental Self-Care
Taking care of your mental health involves activities that give your mind a break from the stress. It gives us a new target to focus our attention on. We should feel a new sense of adventure while on these tasks. If our mind wanders back to the previous stressor, no worries. Take the opportunity to go back to focusing on the new activity. I hope these following activities resonate with you.
- Read a book
- Listen to music
- Mindfulness
- Take a Mental Health Day (instead of sick days)
- Watch YouTube videos
- Watch a few favorite television episodes
- Netflix binge
- Play video games
- Watch something inspiring about a cause you care about
- 5-4-3-2-1 coping technique (is that grounding?)
- Meditation
- Painting
- Watching Cooking Videos
- Writing
- Bird watching
- Taking care of houseplants
- Laugh at memes
- Knitting
- Bake/Cook
Social Self-Care
This form of care involves being around people. As humans, we all feel this need to be connected with others around us. This can be friends, family, strangers, or community members around us. We are just around other living creatures that make us feel like we are bonding with each other.
- Hang out with friends
- Seeing a therapist
- Think about your significant other
- Play team sports
- Keep up with your support network
- Have a meaningful conversation
- Pet a pet (yours, friends, shelters)
Spiritual Self-Care
When people think of this part of their life, they think of religion immediately. While religion can be part of it, I want to emphasize that it can be more than that. Our spirituality gives us meaning and purpose in our lives. There are moments where we need to nurture something we cannot touch but feel like it is a part of us.
- Go to your place of worship
- Volunteer
- Daily Mantras
- Write down your values and beliefs
- Listen to what your soul needs
- Find a quiet room to pray
Emotional Self-Care
This is the part of our lives where we need to fulfill our needs. However, everyone needs to understand first what needs they feel are unmet. The following ideas showcase ideas that help fulfill emotional needs in our lives.
- Gratitude Jar. Fill a jar with parts of your life that you are thankful for. It
- Write down a list of your values
- Mirror Messages
- Social Media Detox
- Practice saying no
- Sitting in silence
- Boundaries
- Draw your feelings out on some paper or canvas
- Have a panda day.
- You ask yourself, “What would a panda do?” Every decision you make would be based on what a panda would do. They eat, sleep, and repeat.
- Treat yourself the same way you would treat your best friend when you feel at your worst. What would you say to them?
- Think of all the things you have been through and overcome
- Think of the things you have achieved today and write them down
- Try to be less harsh to yourself and forgive yourself.
- being harsh on yourself when you’re already down will make it worse
- Journal
At the end of the day, we all need a combination of these different types of self-care. One self-care idea is not more important than another because all are important. I will concede that we may need each self-care in different amounts though. Take an opportunity to discover what amount you need in each category. Comment below what ideas resonate with you.
Wen is a Certified Health and Wellness Coach who helped people change their behaviors. He brings experience from educating people about their physical health, nutrition, sexual health, and substance use. As a coach, he has worked with over one hundred clients in changing their tobacco use and had over five hundred conversations as a crisis counselor.
