What Is Self-Care?
Do you ever find yourself feeling anxious, stressed, and tired during and after work? Are you able to relax and unplug throughout the day in order to recharge, or do you find that these negative feelings follow you into the next days, weeks, or even months? If you find it hard to release the pressures associated with the multitude of things you may be juggling at home and work, self-care is exactly what you need!
Self-care is a set of activities performed on a daily basis that promote physical and mental wellbeing. It is a positive method of stress regulation that can help you be more productive at work and have an easier time concentrating on your tasks. Activities you choose to practice can take a lot of time, such as working on an art installation, or can take just a few minutes, such as taking some deep breaths at your desk at work to recenter yourself.
Life is demanding and there are many different obligations that can take up a lot of your time and attention throughout the week. By carving out time to focus on your wants and needs and engaging in enjoyable activities each day, you can become less overwhelmed and more fulfilled in your personal, professional, and social life.
How Do I Make Time For Self-Care?
When you have a plate full of things you need to do, it can be easy to feel like you don’t have the time for self-care. The reality is that taking time out of each day to practice self-care can help you maintain a healthy work-life balance, so it’s worth the investment! Here are some tips to help prioritize self-care in your life:
Plan It Out: You can try writing down your self-care activities for the day on your to-do list, setting a reminder on your phone, or making it an event on your calendar at a specific time every day.
Create a Routine: Each morning, consider when you need to be present for work and when you can incorporate blocks of time for self-care. When you are starting out, it may be better to add small breaks throughout the day for stress relief rather than time-intensive activities to avoid becoming overwhelmed.
Make The Most Of Your Time: If you walk or take the bus to work, you can try listening to music or a podcast during the commute. If you take an hour for lunch, you can call a friend and chat with them or use some of that time to take a walk around the block. Remember, it is not necessarily the quantity of self-care you perform, but rather the quality of it and how much it helps you destress.
Physical Self-Care Strategies
Prioritize Sleep: Everything seems worse when you are tired. Fatigue can cause irritability, difficulty concentrating, and apathy; it can even contribute to depression and anxiety. You should aim for 7-8 hours of sleep every night whenever possible. Set a bedtime reminder on your phone so you can try to go to bed around the same time each day. Also, there is no shame in taking a nap when you need to!
Focus On Proper Nutrition: Have you ever clocked out for the day and realized you never got a chance to eat? Make it a priority to eat regularly throughout the day! Try to incorporate nutritious fruits and vegetables into your meals and snacks, and limit your sugar and caffeine intake to avoid the dreaded mid-afternoon crash.
Drink Enough Water: You should aim to drink 8 glasses of water in total throughout the day to ensure you are staying properly hydrated. A good rule of thumb is to drink at least one glass of water for every hour you are at work.
Make Time For Exercise: Even if it’s just a brisk walk with your coworker during the day, it is important to get moving. Regular exercise can reduce feelings of stress, anger, and depression.
Emotional Self-Care Strategies
Carve Out Time For Your Hobbies: Hobbies can provide an outlet for managing stress and can increase happiness levels. Make time to do the things you love that are not related to work. If you like being outdoors, you may go hiking or visit a local park. If you like to tune into your artistic side, you may try crafting, dancing, baking, making music, or drawing. If you enjoy learning something new, you can visit a museum or read a book.
Practice Self-Compassion: Before you say something critical to yourself, think “would I say this to someone I care about?”. If the answer is no, then don’t say it to yourself! Create affirmations for yourself, or check out your daily affirmation on your Oasis app. Recite affirmations to yourself when you are feeling down in order to practice kindness towards yourself and lift your spirits.
Practice Mindfulness: Mindfulness helps you slow down and focus on the present moment without feeling overwhelmed. The beauty of mindfulness is that you can practice it for as much or little time as you want, and it can even be done from the comfort of your office during the workday. Let’s try a mindfulness technique right now: put your pointer finger on your wrist and draw the number 8 repeatedly. Focus on the sensation on your skin. Keep doing this until you feel calm and grounded.
Unplug From Technology: After you are done with work for the day, try putting your phone and laptop on “do not disturb” mode. You can also put up a temporary out-of-office message on your work email to alert others that you are unavailable so that you can relax without worrying about what is going on at the office.
Practice Focused Breathing: Take five minutes to practice focused breathing. Notice the breath coming into your nose with your inhalation and leaving your nose with your exhalation.
Journal: Keeping a journal allows you to have a place to write down your thoughts and feelings to help you understand them more clearly. Look up prompts online if you are unsure of where to start. You can also check out your journal log on your Oasis app to get started.
Spiritual Self-Care Strategies
Practice Gratitude: When you feel overwhelmed by work, it can be hard to remember all the good things you have going for you. Write down something you are grateful for each day. This could be a person, place, pet, experience, or really anything that you are grateful for in your life.
Pray: Prayer can help you explore meaning and connect you to a higher power. It can also help you see beyond the stressors you are experiencing in the present and reflect on the bigger picture of what your purpose is in life.
Social Self-Care Strategies
Hang Out With Friends And Family: Reach out and check in with a friend or family member that you haven’t spoken to in a while. You can make plans to meet them virtually or in-person. Identify something you both like to do, such as watching a funny movie, and make time for it!
Don’t Overschedule: It’s okay to say “no” when you are busy or just because you don’t want to do something. The Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) can be difficult to look past, but remember that it’s okay to prioritize rest.
Provide And Seek Help: Being helpful to someone can be gratifying. Sign up for a volunteer opportunity or ask a friend if they need anything. Asking for help when you need it is also just as important. You can’t fill someone else’s cup if yours is empty.
Scholarly Sources
GoodTherapy. 134 activities to add to your self-care plan.
Markway, B. (2017, March 16). Seven types of self-care activities when coping with stress. Psychology Today.
Riegel, B., Dunbar, S. B., Fitzsimons, D., Freedland, K. E., Lee, C. S., Middleton, Stromberg, A., Vellone, E., Webber, D., & Jaarsma, T. (2021). Self-care research: Where are we now? Where are we going? International Journal of Nursing Studies, 116, 103402.
