We all know that we need to take care of ourselves but sometimes find it hard to create time or even may feel it is selfish to do so. Selfcare is not selfish but only selfless. I regularly remind my yoga students and coaching clients, that if we do not find time to care for ourselves first, we will not have the energy or capacity to care for those whom we love most. We tend to think of it as the “all or nothing” principle. It does not have to be that way. If we choose to set aside 45 minutes a day for ourselves and find that the day has slipped away from us before we even realized it, we feel that there is no way we will ever have time. One way to find out how to incorporate a bit of time in your day is just track your daily activity by jotting it down on paper or on your notepad on your phone for one week. These activities include everything you do including scrolling mindlessly on Facebook to switching channel to channel on your TV to planning your day. Once you see your activity log for the week you may find how much time you are wasting on mindless and unimportant activities. This is where you may try to squeeze in a bit of “Me Time.” What should this “selfcare or me time” be? It can be anything that brings you joy, whether it be just standing out on your front porch and breathing in the air, going for a walk, sipping on your favorite cup of tea, reading a chapter out of the book you have been longing to read or better yet meditating or just sitting in silence! You can choose three different activities and mix them up for a week or change it up each day. Just find what best works for you at that time of day. But whoa 45 minutes of your time taken in one sitting can feel daunting at first. So here is where I will share the Selfcare Formula with you. Instead of carving out an entire 45 minutes at once, break it up into 3 15-minute breaks. Once in the morning before you begin your day, once in the mid afternoon and once in the evening. The evening practice will even help you unwind from a stressful day and to create a calm demeanor for your family. If 15-minute intervals are too much to start with then how about breaking it down to 3 10-minute intervals for a total of 30 minutes. Taking breaks throughout your day will not only reset your mind but it will also fuel you with good energy to take with you to complete the next task you have on your to-do list. For example, would you buy a car and keep running it without taking it to the shop for a regular oil change and tune-up? If you did not do this, the car would eventually have problems running efficiently, break down and no longer run. Would you do this to your own body? Our body is our vehicle to move in this life practice. We must give it a regular tune up or reset by taking breaks and doing what brings us joy. When we do take time to slow down, we will also be able to listen to the signals our body sends us. Listening to the signals when they are just whispers will prevent us from going into a complete physical and mental breakdown. Often, we are so busy doing things for others, we fail to listen to our own body signals. Reaching a point of mental or physical breakdown will cause us to have to completely halt so that we may heal. If we are busy healing from trauma then who will care for those who need us most? Unlike being able to rent another car for transportation while our car is in the shop for repair, we cannot rent another body. The current body we have is the only vehicle we have access to in this life. I urge you to take a moment to be available for yourself every day. If you do not have a full 45 minutes, then break it down throughout the day. Practice this for 4 weeks straight and just notice how you feel. You may find that YES you do have time to do things you love most. You do not have to have long stretches of time to enjoy yourself. Of course, vacations are an exception to this, and I encourage you to be available to plan them and enjoy that way too. But remember, regular breaks to reset during the day is the key to success and happiness in all realms of life.
Want to try one of my yoga classes? I teach group and private sessions. I specialize in Yoga for Chronic Pain and Kundalini Yoga. Learn more about my practices here.
Want to discovery ways you may create time for yourself and get the success and happiness you seek? I encourage you to schedule a call with me to learn how. You may actually be surprised to find out how much potential and strength you actually have to reach your wellness goals. Sometimes we need that accountability partner to give us that last push of encouragement. Many times we know we “should” be doing something but just don’t. So what are you waiting for? Try a free 15 minute discovery call with me today to find out if I am the right fit for you. You have nothing to lose but perhaps a bit of stress.
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