July 24 is International Self-Care Day

Jun 29, 2023

July 24 marks International Self-Care Day, an annual opportunity to put a spotlight on self-care and the benefit effective self-care can bring to both individuals and healthcare systems as a vital foundation of health. But what exactly is Self-Care? Self-care is quite literally taking care of yourself. Your whole self.

Self-care has been defined as, “a multidimensional, multifaceted process of purposeful engagement in strategies that promote healthy functioning and enhance well-being.”

Unfortunately, many people view self-care as a luxury, rather than a priority. And consequently, can be left feeling overwhelmed and tired, and struggle to handle life’s inevitable challenges.

It’s important to assess how you’re caring for yourself in several different domains so you can ensure you’re caring for your whole self.

Types of Self-Care

Physical Self-Care: Physical self-care includes how you’re fueling your body, how much sleep you’re getting, how much physical activity you are doing, and how well you’re caring for your physical needs. Attending appointments, taking medication as prescribed, and managing your health are all part of good physical self-care.2

When it comes to physical self-care, ask yourself the following questions to assess whether there might be some areas you need to improve:

Are you getting adequate sleep?
Is your diet fueling your body well?
Are you taking charge of your health?
Are you getting enough exercise?

Social Self-Care: Socialization is key to self-care. But, often, it’s hard to make time for friends and it’s easy to neglect your relationships when life gets busy. Close connections are important to your well-being. The best way to cultivate and maintain close relationships is to put time and energy into building your relationships with others.

To assess your social self-care, consider:

Are you getting enough face-to-face time with your friends?
What are you doing to nurture your relationships with friends and family?

Mental Self-Care: The way you think and the things that you’re filling your mind with greatly influence your psychological well-being. Mental self-care includes doing things that keep your mind sharp, like learning about a subject that fascinates you. You might find reading books or watching movies that inspire you fuels your mind.

Mental self-care involves doing things that help you stay mentally healthy. Practicing self-compassion and acceptance, for example, helps you maintain a healthier inner dialogue.

Here are a few questions to consider when you think about your mental self-care:

Are you making enough time for activities that mentally stimulate you?
Are you doing proactive things to help you stay mentally healthy?

Emotional Self-Care: It’s important to have healthy coping skills to deal with uncomfortable emotions, like anger, anxiety, and sadness. Emotional self-care may include activities that help you acknowledge and express your feelings on a regular basis. Whether you talk to a partner or close friend about how you feel, or you set aside time for leisure activities that help you process your emotions, it’s important to incorporate emotional self-care into your life.

When assessing your emotional self-care strategies, consider these questions:

Do you have healthy ways to process your emotions?
Do you incorporate activities into your life that help you feel recharged?

Where to learn more about Self-Care:

Summer is a great time to think about self-care.

With long sunny days and warmer weather, there are more opportunities than ever to switch up your routine and enjoy what the season has to offer. Use our self-care checklist to get some ideas for taking care of yourself this summer. We hope these suggestions will help you get moving, get outside and enjoy the sunshine!

Try these 10 ideas for summer wellness:

Ditch the couch and relax outdoors. Grab a blanket or lawn chair and something to read and set up camp on a shady patch of grass.
Start a garden or join a community garden. Gardening can be a nice way to meditate, enjoy the outdoors and get some sunshine. It can also serve as a bonding time with your family or a way to make new friends. And at the end of the day, you can enjoy the literal fruits (and vegetables) of your labor!
Tidy one small space. Perhaps a drawer or the top of your desk – even having one space clean and free of clutter can help you feel calmer.
Make a summer feel-good playlist. Bring on the summer tunes! Music can be an effortless way to improve your mood and motivate you to get moving. Bonus points for listening while exercising or cleaning.
Try a new exercise. Getting those endorphins flowing can help calm your mind and improve your mood. Think about doing something outdoors like hiking, tennis or swimming. Just don’t forget your sunscreen and bug spray!
Look for things going on in your community. Search online or in the newspaper for events going on around town. Consider outdoor movies, yard sales, festivals, farmer’s markets, concerts or dance classes. Making fun plans can help you feel excited and give you something to look forward to.
Start or continue a journal. Writing can be a great way to express how you feel and check-in with your emotions. Or, it can just be a place to doodle or draw. Make it whatever you need.
Reconnect with someone. Call an old friend – or even a grandparent or parent.
Go exploring. Pull up a map and find a new area of town that you haven’t been to yet.
Do a needs assessment. How did your last week go? Is there anything you could do to make next week better? Maybe you need more sleep, more social time or to prepare some healthy meals before your next busy week. Take a moment to reflect and think about how you can make time for whatever you need to best care for yourself.

Use these ideas to make your own self-care checklist this summer.

Even small changes to your routine can improve your self-care practice and overall mood. Focus on new ways you can be active, get outside and get involved with your community. Make this summer a season of self-care.

Source: MentalHealthFirstAid.org