Proper self-care looks different from person to person, but one thing I think we can all agree on is this:
A lot of of the popular self-care techniques aren’t all that helpful.
I’ve always been practical about my own self-care practices from the start. As such, I wasn’t really pulled into the allure of crystals somehow instilling unique properties. That and I can’t exactly afford to “treat myself” to bubble baths and constant dining out.
I needed something practical and effective.
So below is a list of things that I consider part of that category. They don’t cost much money wise and are easy to implement. If you find yourself in a stressed out place, consider giving any of the following a shot to help you readjust.
Photo by Yerlin Matu on Unsplash
Effective And Proper Self-Care Techniques
Do Less
Our lives are very busy in all manner of things. Between having work, our hobbies, and other commitments, there is rarely any time to unwind. Beyond that, often suggesting this kind of advice normally comes from people like me – people who have the privilege to take that up.
But at the same time, I genuinely encourage this and there’s some things you can do to do less.
Some of the later techniques can even help with doing less but the general principle is simple:
Do less by not adding more.
Whether you got approached by a network marketer for a “wonderful opportunity” or you found some work that is a little out of the way from your usual routine it’s important you pause on those things. Genuinely take stock on the practicality and be realistic about it.
Even if you’re getting on the “ground floor” of an network marketing opportunity, it’s more likely to be a scam if not a big money sink with little payoff. And unless that new gig is paying more and requires the same amount of work than what you’re currently doing then it could disrupt your life more than usual.
Rest More
A lot of people, especially Americans, don’t get a whole lot of sleep. As such, I genuinely believe that getting enough sleep and generally sleeping more than you are now will help.
If you’re getting only five or six hours, you want to be bumping it up to seven to eight. Nine if you are especially exhausted.
Our body does a lot of things while we’re sleeping and not getting enough will result in us being more disoriented and unfocused. It’ll take tasks that could be done quickly longer to do. It’ll be tougher to focus and prioritize as well.
Getting enough sleep can make a world of difference to your life.
Proper Self-Care Through Outsourcing
Whether you are an entrepreneur, run a side-hustle, or neither of those, there is always an opportunity to outsource various tasks.
If you find it difficult to clean up the house, you can hire a personal cleaner to come in every week or two. There are several independent cleaners who will work for cheap.
If you run a business, consider hiring a marketer to help you with social media. Make it their business to promote you the best way possible. This by extension extends to people like me, writers, video editors, graphic designers, and other creatives.
Freelance sites like Fiverr and Upwork are also great places to reach out and offer people gigs.
At the end of the day, outsourcing these kinds of things can free you time to focus on other parts of your life you want to be focusing on. And since we can do this in a more affordable manner now, it’s easier to take advantage of these things.
Proper Self-Care Through Hydration
Dehydration can do a lot on our mind and you can feel the effects well before you’re parched. One great way for proper self-care is to make a point of drinking way more water than you are right now.
Yes. You’ll be peeing more often as your body won’t be used to that much water.
But water is highly rejuvinating for our bodies. You can feel the effects of drinking water immediately as you take in big gulps of water.
If you need help with drinking more water, there are plenty of apps or even water bottles that can remind you to drink water.
Between my own bottle lighting up and my productivity app telling me to drink water every now and then, I’m able to consistently stay hydrated throughout the day.
Have Higher Protein Meals
One thing that I’m slowly transitioning my body into next month is the Paleo diet. I tried it while in university and since I saw results from that, I want to be trying it again now. I believe with a combination of this diet and exercising regularly, I’m able to genuinely push myself and see weight loss results that I haven’t seen since I took a weight loss challenge years ago.
All in all, the Paleo diet prioritizes protein, fruits, nuts, berries, and veggies. All around it’s a very colourful diet as it discourages processed sugars, wheat products like bread, pasta, and rice, among a few other things.
You don’t need to go to that extreme with yours, but making a point of getting more protein in you through meats, plant-based protein, and veggies is a good form of self-care.
In the words of Mark Manson “even eating a fucking salad is self-care.”
Trying Weekly Therapy
Out of thevarious techniques, this one has an asterix to it for a few reasons if I’m being honest. This asterix being if you can find a good therapist.
Because let’s be honest, therapy these days can be pretty challenging. Between a shortage of them and the push for more self-care, many real therapists can find it challenging to keep up with and expand their pool of patients. That or they get burnt out from the whole thing.
It results in people turning to various apps or even ChatGPT to help them with deeply personal and complex situations that those systems aren’t exactly built for or very intuitive.
If you do manage to find a therapist and get along well with them, great. But I would consider this as a last resort.
Proper Self-Care Means Getting Out More
Go outside and go for a walk. Work in a café. Join a community group or pick up some kind of creative hobby.
While we all try to find the meaning of life in our lives, one thing we can generally agree with is this:
Our lives should be spent working on our favourite projects, growing the way we want to grow, and solving problems we want to solve.
And to me the best way to do those things is to be getting outside and mixing things up in your life.
At the turn of the year I’m pushing myself this month to figure out what I want this year to mean for me. In the end, I choose growth. Growth in the particular areas I’m focusing on more specifically.
And part of that stems from getting out, restarting old routines, and trying new things in the mix too. I would encourage you do the same.
Proper Self-Care Means Focusing On Things You Control
Whether it’s the worlds richest man doing Nazi stuff, or the current president making the reproductive rights website shut down suddenly, we’re in for a rough handful of years. Outside of American politics, it’s just harder to live overall. The cost of food continues to go up along with housing and rent. Government bodies are doing little to ease some of the pains that common people are experiencing.
Everything just feels like it’s falling apart.
But during times like these, proper self-care is learning to make ammends to that. To push back in our own way by focusing on the smaller things.
By focusing on the things we can control rather than worry about the things we can’t.
Baking/Cooking
This doesn’t make the list enough and it really should for one simple thing: cooking and baking is a lot of fun and is a great way to express yourself.
It’s a highly underrated and undervalued skill thanks in part to pre-made meals being more convenient, however you can get into making fast and healthy food. There are no shortage of five-ingredient recipes, let alone three-ingredient recipes.
While baking is something that does take time as well, a lot of the time is spent with waiting while the prep itself is not that long. Get into a nice flow and you can find this particular technique fun to do and convenient as you can make meals to prepare in advance and snacks.
Proper Self-Care Takes Time
Proper self-care at its core is something that anyone can achieve but the big thing to keep in mind is that it takes time. To me, self-care is something to be baked into your overall routine and life as they should be things that naturally occur.
As such, self-care is more like a habit and indulging in a hobby. That or making your life more efficient where it’s realistic to do so.
It’s why I find these techniques to be so effective as starting one or two of them makes it easier to try a few more. And the more you indulge in these things, the more your life will begin to adjust to fit into that.
And that’s what life is really all about. Doing what you love and living how you want to live.
To your growth!
Eric S Burdon