WHY WE NEED SELF-CARE

There are four vital functions to self-care:

 It helps us cope during periods of stress, loss, change and ill-health. This is often when self-care drops away because we are pressed for time, energy and resources and we lack the clarity to think of new ways of nourishing ourselves. It’s also precisely the time we need self-care the most! We need a well-articulated selfcare toolkit to turn to during these times, to be reminded of something simple to help us keep going.

 We need it to help us recover and heal from challenging times. Selfcare helps us process and move through our emotions following loss, stress and change and gives us the opportunity to heal.

 We need to engage in selfcare to keep us energetically topped up so we can be resilient in the face of future stress. Let’s face it, stress isn’t going to go away and even much longed-for events can seriously deplete us. We need to keep an eye on our ‘energy bank balance’ – meaning that, when we’re energetically abundant, we are resourceful and creative in response to challenge, and when we’re energetically low, even insignificant happenings can needle us and the bigger things are more likely to floor us. Self-care keeps us resilient and gives us the best chance to deal effectively with life in all its glory.

 Self-care is the means by which we become the people that we aspire to be. What qualities do you hold dear – being present, kind, and loving, for example? Engaging in self-care can help you be the best version of yourself – it’s the ultimate win-win. For parents, it’s particularly vital to have a strong self-care practice so that we are actively role modelling these lifegiving skills for our children. There is nothing fluffy or extravagant about self-care when we see its potency through this lens!