Interested in Self-Care? Stop Neglecting These Things
Practicing good self-care can be difficult if you’re ignoring the important elements that comprise total wellness. Total wellness is made up of different areas that you should address to make sure you’re feeling and doing well. When you take care of at least one thing from each area, you’ll wind up taking care of yourself.
Financial Wellness
You can’t hope to be well if your finances aren’t in order. According to Discover, you can get a handle on your finances with an easy five-step approach. It’s important to set a budget as well as set up saving accounts for your immediate and long-term needs. If you’re in debt, then make sure to make a plan to pay it off. Your route to financial wellness shouldn’t only take care of your immediate needs but also future ones like funeral expenses. When you put things in place to ensure your funeral is arranged and paid for well ahead of time, you won’t have to worry about leaving that burden on your loved ones. Make sure to contact funeral homes to determine the best way you can carry out your pre-paid funeral plans while keeping your budget intact.
Physical Wellness
When dealing with the demands of your daily life, it can be easy to let your physical wellness slide. You can put a stop to that by focusing on two things: rest and activity. These might be direct opposites, but they’re definitely on the same coin. To get a good night’s sleep, it’s best if you develop a consistent sleep routine and stay away from electronic devices or large meals close to bedtime. Even if you have a busy schedule, MoveGB suggests squeezing in workouts during commercial breaks when watching TV or doing a quick High Intensity Interval Training session, which will still provide a good workout.
Mental Wellness
Taking care of the first two areas on this list will go a long way towards your mental wellness, but you can go even further. If you’re dealing with a high level of stress, then it’s vital that you find a way to manage it properly. While it would be good to just remove yourself from the stressful situation, that’s more of the ideal than the norm. It might be helpful to cut down on your caffeine content and take supplements that can boost your mental health. Writing down your stressors and having a good laugh with friends are also good ideas. In your downtime, consider practicing some of the relaxation techniques suggested by Mayo Clinic like muscle relaxation and visualization. When you make a concerted effort to relax, your stress levels will not only decrease, but you’ll also stave off certain symptoms that come from stress such as high blood pressure and body pain.
Emotional Wellness
Before you tackle the emotional part of your wellness journey, it might be helpful to define it. Emotional wellness focuses on your awareness of your emotions and handling how they may change with time or circumstances. It can be tricky to get the hang of this at first, but it’s not something you should avoid. To keep on top of your emotional wellness, you’ll need to become aware of your emotions and accept them as they are before moving forward. You’ll then need to explore the link between your emotions and external circumstances so you can practice being in control of how you react to what’s happening around you. As you’re working through the steps, don’t try to force positive emotions as that’s not the point. The point is simply to become better at identifying and expressing your emotions in a healthy way.
Sometimes when people talk about wellness, they place more emphasis on the things you should add to your life without mentioning the things you’re currently ignoring. You should make the effort to stay active, rest well, eat right and take breaks so your life can be healthier and more fulfilling.
Photo courtesy of Pexels
Blog contributor: Emma Grace Brown