What Is Good Self-Care and Why You Deserve It

Many of us are good at keeping busy, looking after others, and juggling responsibilities. But when it comes to self-care, we often aren’t the greatest! Why is that? (Continue reading for potential obstacles to self-care)

Five Potential Obstacles to Self-Care

1. Feeling Guilty

Many people fall in the trap of thinking that by giving themselves the time they deserve, they are taking time away from things that could be completed either on the professional front or the home front.

2. What Will “They” Say?

Some of us believe we must strive to live up to other people’s (families we work with, coworkers, supervisor, in-laws…) expectations of us and put their needs in front of our own.

3. “I’ll Do It Later”

Do you ever find yourself pushing self-care to the bottom of your priority list? You would do it if you just had a “little more time.”

4. Learned Behavior

Who are or were your role models for self-care? It is not always easy to veer away from what we have been “taught.”

5. Feeling Unimportant

I know great people who plow through work stuff just to chase the sense of achievement and to feel on top of their workload. But underneath all of that can be the idea that I am not good enough and I have to push on farther than anyone to prove myself.

Do any of these resonate with you?

Who Is Standing in the Way of Your Self-Care

For most people, the person standing in the way of their self-care is themselves. Only you can really control how much you are going to push yourself, and you must figure out when you are pushing yourself to a breaking point.

How to Be More Accountable to Yourself with Regard to Practicing Self-Care

Find an accountability partner to help you to stick to your plan. Book a date with a friend to go to the gym or do a fun activity. Once booked, it’s harder to back out. You schedule work engagements and would never think of missing one; use that same responsibility gene by scheduling your self-care too!

Self-care is central to living a life that’s productive, fulfilling, and that you feel good about. Yet too few of us know how to honor our deep needs and cravings to slow down, rebalance, and ask for the help we need.

Self-care is just as important as hard work to foster a healthy, meaningful life—and you deserve the peace and personal satisfaction that it brings.

The Upside of Good Self-Care

When you take good care of yourself, you feel better, and you function better. You, your work, and your family and friends all benefit! As the mental health advocate Katie Reed says, “Self-care is giving the world the best of you instead of what’s left of you.”