Taking Care of your mental, emotional, and physical health
Your mental, emotional, and physical health are an important parts of your overall health. It is important to take care of yourself, even when times are hard and stressful. Self-care is a conscious act of taking care of oneself in order to promote their own mental, emotional, and physical health. Often, self-care is thought of as a luxury and not as a priority. However, in order be able to take care of the people you love, you must take care of yourself first.
What is mental self-care?
Mental self-care is taking care of your mind and your mental health. Taking care of your mental health means doing things that continue to engage and inspire you. Fueling your mind may look like:
- Reading a book
- Doing a puzzle
- Learning about a new subject
- Watching a movie or a TV show
- Taking a bubble bath
- Telling yourself positive affirmations
- Practicing self-compassion and acceptance
What is emotional self-care?
Emotional self-care is similar to mental self-care and taking care of your mental health. However, emotional self-care is building healthy coping skills to deal with stress and any emotions that may be impacting you in negative ways – such as anger, anxiety, and sadness. Taking care of your emotional health may look like:
- Acknowledging/expressing your feelings on a regular bias
- Speaking to a therapist to help develop healthy coping skills
- Hanging out with family and/or close friends
- Taking a few minutes to focus on your breathing
- Writing in a journal
- Making time for self-reflection
What is physical self-care?
Physical self-care is taking care of your body and its needs. In order for your body to run efficiently, you need to make sure that you are taking care of your body. Ways to take care of your physical body may look like:
- Making sure you are eating healthy meals to fuel your body
- Drinking plenty of water
- Getting plenty of sleep each night to rest your body
- Getting enough physical activity every day
- Going to your appointments for your health
- Taking any medications that are prescribed to you
There is no right way to self-care. Self-care is all about taking care of yourself in ways that works best for you and only you. It is always important to find the time, even if it is just for a few minutes each day, to take care of yourself and your overall mental, emotional, and physical health.
Ready for some self-care but don’t know where to start? Take control today and find a healthcare provider near you!
