Taking care of ourselves is one of the most important things we can do, yet it’s often the first thing that gets put on the back burner. This year, let’s commit to prioritizing self-care and making it a regular part of our lives. Here are six steps you can take to help make this happen.
Set Boundaries: Setting boundaries is essential to self-care because it helps us maintain control over our time and energy. By recognizing how much time and energy we have available at any given moment, we can create space for ourselves when needed. Whether that means saying “no” more often or delegating tasks to others, setting boundaries will help ensure that we don’t become overwhelmed or overworked.
Get Moving: Physical activity is one of the best ways to reduce stress and boost your mood. Exercise has many benefits, from increasing endorphins to improving cognitive functioning, so it's important to make some time for physical activity each day. Even if it's just going for a walk around the block or doing some stretching before bedtime, getting moving is an excellent way to practice self-care.
Unplug Regularly: We live in a digital world—so much so that sometimes it feels like technology controls our lives! Unplugging from all devices regularly is an important step in prioritizing self-care because it gives us time away from screens and helps us reset our minds and bodies. Try setting aside a few hours each week where you turn off your phone and avoid using other digital devices; you'll be surprised by how refreshed you feel!
Schedule Time For Yourself: Just like anything else we want to do in life, making time for ourselves requires planning and scheduling ahead of time! Whether it's 30 minutes of reading before bed or two hours dedicated solely to pampering yourself on Sunday afternoons, carving out specific times each week will help ensure that you're taking care of yourself throughout the entire year.
Prioritize Sleep: Getting enough sleep is essential for physical and mental well-being but far too often, we sacrifice sleep to get more done during the day—which actually makes us less productive overall! Make sure you're getting 7-8 hours of quality rest each night to feel energized and ready for whatever comes your way during the day ahead.
Practice Gratitude: Practicing gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful things we can do for ourselves daily; even just pausing a few moments each day to think about what we are grateful for can drastically improve our moods and outlooks on life! Writing down three things each night before bed that you are thankful for can help cultivate an attitude of gratitude which will lead directly to better self-care practices throughout your entire year!
We all deserve to take care of ourselves; however, making sure this happens can be difficult with all the demands life throws at us daily! But with these six tips, hopefully, you now have some helpful ideas on how to prioritize self-care this year—because your health should always be at the top of your list! So, here’s to believing you will feel worthy enough to allow 2023 to be filled with joy, peace, love, and plenty of self-care.