Do You Find Self-Care Challenging?

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Do you find self-care challenging?
Does it feel selfish to put yourself first?
Are you consistent with your self-care practice?
Do you find yourself putting the needs of others before your own on a regular (even daily) basis?
Do you think practicing good self-care is important?

I think it’s fair to say that many of us would answer yes to the first four questions. However, I believe the most important question is the last one, and that once we’re truly able to answer that with a resounding YES, the rest will begin to fall into place.

Last October, I wrote about Archie (our new dog) helping me achieve wellness, happiness and abundance daily. Nearly seven months on I’m still finding it challenging, but I’m making good progress, and I thought I’d report in on what's working for me...

Starting my workdays at 4.45am so I can...

meditate for 15 minutes
do yoga stretches for 10 minutes to get my body moving
drink a cup of hot lemon water
repeat the Four Agreements aloud in the shower
exercise my shoulders in the shower, cos they can be a bit dodgy

And while I’m getting ready I...

really enjoy my one cup of coffee for the day, drinking it slowly, savouring the taste
listen to a beautiful mantra
listen to a guided gratitude track
give Archie cuddles

One cup of coffee was not a deliberate move, I just found myself not wanting them any more during the day. I love how our mind sometimes makes it so easy for us to either reduce or give up things that really don’t serve us well. Giving up alcohol and becoming a vegetarian in the same year (both happened like that for me, eight or nine years ago. It was surprisingly effortless to give up both and I’m just waiting for that to happen with a few other things. 😊

When the weather allows it, I walk to the shop, which takes about 45 to 50 minutes, cos once Peter drops Archie off to me, it slows down considerably. Archie’s 14 years old now, and he’s slowing down, so I do the first 30 minutes on my own at a brisker pace, after which Archie joins me and we enjoy a little meander, sniffing everything in sight (him not me). 😊

While I walk, I’m listening to inspirational stuff on YouTube, and more often than not it’s Abraham-Hicks, with a bit of Wayne Dyer and others thrown in. Occasionally I’ll listen to the Gratitude track I mentioned earlier, because it just makes me feel so damn good. 😊

Getting up at 4.45am will sound crazy to many, including me, but the rewards are huge, and I just had to find a way of reframing it, so it doesn’t feel like ‘efforting' as in, something ‘I have to do to be a better version of myself’.

I remember nailing it while describing my morning routine to a friend. I was still in the ‘efforting’ stage, but I had a light-bulb moment, realising that the first two hours of my day are actually all about me and unconditional self-care/self-love. Those two hours of practicing mindfulness set me up for the rest of my day, and things flow a lot better. I balance the early start by being in bed by 9pm at the latest on work nights.

One of the biggest acts of self-care I’ve been doing for myself in the last couple of months is taking two days a week off. It was actually during a conversation with Viv that I knew I was ready to do it, rather than just continuing to talk about doing it. Just like the alcohol and meat, it has been rather effortless.

If this feels like the nudge you’ve been waiting for, just have a go at starting your day in whatever way feels like self-care/self-love to you. It doesn’t need to be like my routine, just something that works in with your lifestyle.

And don’t be hard on yourself, if you only manage once a week at first, just keep giving it a go, until, before you know it, you’ve got a wonderful routine that you can feel is making a difference to your everyday life, and probably to those around you as well.

If you’re interested in checking out the mantra I mentioned, or the gratitude track, let me know and I’ll add links to them in a comment.

Namaste
Michelle

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