Self-Care

For as long as I can remember, I never thought to put self-care, rest, sleep or anything in that sense in the forefront of my resolutions. I always thought maybe some thing a little more cliché like losing weight, saving, budgeting, doing better in that sense was the right choice. I’ve always been one to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of every day life that rest came when I felt I had time. Now for someone who buried themselves in work, time definitely wasn’t on my side. I had to learn the hard way how imperative rest was. Not only for my physical health, but for my mental health as well. It wasn’t until I was on the verge of a complete mental breakdown that I realized I was worn out and exhausted.

I work in behavioral health and I’m on call 24/7 365 and this alone is mentally taxing, not to mention being a mother and a wife. Taking care of home, my daughter, being a good wife to my husband. I have a full plate, I make sure bills are paid and make sure my family is fed and the house is clean. Yes of course my husband helps but it’s a lot, and believe me, life does not slow down no matter how much you have on your shoulders. Juggling everything and still managing to practice self care has probably been my biggest challenge thus far. I’ve been able to rest here and there but I’m always on the go and rest came very rarely to me.

This year I have made it a point to prioritize rest, I don’t mean sleeping, although I’m proud to say I have been going to bed a lot earlier than I was before. However, I’m talking about staying off of social media, reading books, going for walks to enjoy nature, and not answering my phone every time it rings. The rest I have chosen to focus on is giving my brain a break. I feel That my brain is always going nonstop, thousands of miles a minute and I am teaching myself to slow down, take some mental health breaks, clearing my mind of all of life’s challenges. Whether I’m home listening to music, taking a bubble bath, anything to focus on pure relaxation, it allows me to have the opportunity to forget about my stress for that moment. And when I come back to reality I feel that I have the ability to approach my situations with a better and much clearer mindset. I have set firm boundaries for myself, and although it takes daily reminders of me telling myself “it’s okay to take a break” and things such as this, I have found it to be profoundly helpful in my goal to allow myself to rest. I have made it a point to not get more than 9 hours of sleep because when I sleep longer it makes me much more tired throughout the days and I have also significantly reduced my caffeine intake. All of this has made me feel like I’m not only more productive in my busy day to day, but it has allowed me to prioritize myself and my needs so I can ensure I’m able to be there for my family and do my job to the best of my abilities.

I feel that in doing this, allowing myself to rest, I can be the best version of myself. I know this is not easy, I can’t even guarantee that it’s ever going to be easy but this challenge is beyond worth it. In the week or so that I have been doing more to allow myself to rest, I have felt amazing and this resolution is the best decision I could have ever made.