Simple and Effective Ideas for How to Take Care of Yourself

Taking care of yourself and your well-being is important. You would think that such a basic concept wouldn’t need to be stated, but we can often ignore the things we know to be basic and beneficial to us. For various reasons, self-care can take a back seat for a season, or a person may simply not understand the value of self-care and find themselves experiencing the consequences of that neglect.

Why self-care matters

The last few years have found a significant uptick in the usage of the term “self-care.” For the most part, people assume self-care is when a person looks after their own health and well-being. Your health refers to your emotional, physical, spiritual, and mental well-being, the totality of who you are as a person, functioning in the way that the Lord intended.

Self-care is about recognizing what sort of creature a human being is, and then taking steps to nurture the various aspects of that human being so that they can attain their fullest potential. Half of the greatest command is to love your neighbor as you love yourself (Matthew 22:34-40). Self-regard is important, if not least because it can give you some sort of standard by which to measure how you treat others.

Of course, self-regard can go awry and turn into a self-centered focus that ousts concern for others. One reason people may be wary of the idea of self-care is that it can be used to justify deep selfishness and a stubborn refusal to look out for the good of others. However, this does not negate the basic point that it’s important to take care of yourself because you are a human person, who matters to God and others.

Some dimensions of self-care are suggested to us by verses such as, ^“And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.” (Luke 2:52, NIV) Mental, physical, spiritual, and relational well-being matter, and they comprise aspects of our growth we should all attend to. Jesus, fully God and fully man, grew as a person in these various dimensions, and that’s one way to think about areas for self-care.

Challenges for self-care

Self-care can take a back seat or be absent in a person’s life for several reasons, including having poor boundaries. Boundaries allow you to create space to meet your own needs, and they are so important when it comes to taking the time and making the effort to meet your own needs for your well-being.

A person may have poor boundaries for a season, perhaps because they are taking care of a loved one who is critically ill. They set aside things such as sleep and regular meals. However, poor boundaries may also be because an individual has a poor self-concept. They may define themselves by what they do to meet the needs of others, often to their detriment.

Codependent people struggle with boundaries, and consequently with self-care.

Self-care can also be difficult to prioritize when a person is experiencing a lot of pressure at work, school, or in their relationships. When we’re stressed out, well-established routines can suffer as a result, whether that relates to sleep, getting regular exercise, eating well, or spending time to connect meaningfully with others. This is precisely when self-care makes the most difference, but it’s exactly when many people neglect it.

Having the right understanding of self-care makes a difference in prioritizing it. If you think that self-care is self-indulgent or selfish, you won’t make time for it. Additionally, if you believe that self-care routines need to be elaborate, involved, or expensive, then you might avoid them. Taking care of yourself can be as basic as making sure to eat healthy meals, going to sleep at a consistent time, and taking time to pray and read Scripture.

How to take care of yourself

Self-care need not be a complicated or prohibitive enterprise. You can create a simple plan for yourself that takes care of your mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual needs. You can learn how to take care of yourself by doing the following:

• Taking care of your hygiene, including bathing and grooming.
• Eating well, meaning fresh food that comprises a balanced diet.
• Seeking medical care when you need it.
• Getting good sleep regularly.
• Taking time to enjoy and cultivate hobbies.
• Exercising regularly and staying active.
• Socializing with others.
• Being outdoors and enjoying green spaces.
• Taking time to pray and read Scripture, by yourself or in community with others.
• Journaling to help you develop greater self-awareness.
• Maintaining healthy boundaries and learning to say “No.”
• Seeking the help of a mental health professional when you need it.

Your self-care matters, and it doesn’t have to be an elaborate or complicated routine for it to be effective. Each person will have some things that they find enjoyable and relaxing, and that help them start or end their day well. These disciplines enhance their sense of well-being, purpose, and joy. For some, a simple thing like gardening, or tidying their room can have a positive effect on them.

Your self-care routines help you maintain a semblance of calm when things go off the rails and your mood is affected negatively. Daily life will throw several obstacles your way, and your self-care routines provide you with the necessary emotional and mental ballast to help you stay afloat amid challenges.

Having some self-care routines carries benefits to your health and sense of well-being. If you don’t have self-care routines, it’s not hard to begin building these routines into your daily life. To get yourself started with a meaningful self-care routine, you can do a quick survey of your life to ascertain if there are activities that bring you joy, replenish your energy levels, and help you maintain a sense of balance.

Additionally, you don’t have to go big to start with. You can simply begin by choosing one thing you want to fold into your daily routine in the next week. It could be something like going to sleep and waking up at a consistent time. It could be buying a water bottle to carry around to help you hydrate during the day. Whatever you choose, try and reinforce the habit by doing it for at least a week.

At the end of that week of adding something as part of your daily routine, you can look back to assess how you feel. If you’re feeling better, that action or behavior you incorporated may be a helpful addition to your daily routine. If it isn’t, you can consider two options – try it for another week or give it up and find a new thing to try.

When you’ve added one behavior or practice to your daily routine, you can then consider adding others that you think may be helpful. You can speak to other people such as a life coach, loved ones, or a counselor to find out about other healthy practices that might help to improve your overall well-being. Having this support can be especially helpful if it’s challenging for you to get started or stay the course.

Pursuing your well-being requires that you put in the time and effort to implement new habits and break out of old ones. However, it’s worth it, as it will have a net positive effect on your well-being and health. Whatever you choose to implement as part of your self-care routines you can seek support to keep you accountable and to help you discern challenges as well as overcome them.

Support for the journey

If you feel additional support is needed in order to learn how to take care of yourself, consider meeting with a Christian counselor in Los Angeles. Your therapist can help you explore topics like boundaries, self-esteem, and why you may not prioritize self-care. Reach out to our office today at Los Angeles Christian Counseling and we will help you set up an appointment with a Christian mental health counselor from our directory at a location near you.