Start Treating Yourself Right With These Self-Care Tips

We all experience doubt, busy days, and stressful situations. When our friends turn to us for comfort, or our family members need propping up, we don’t hesitate to lend a shoulder, lend a hand, or lend an ear — sometimes all three! You would never tell a struggling loved one that they need to forget how they feel and work harder, or that they just needed to push through a stressful situation despite their feelings, or any of the other harsh things you tell yourself on a daily basis. So, why do you expect all these things of yourself?

Self-care isn’t just about pampering yourself and having “me-time.” It’s about radical self-love. It’s about telling yourself that you are worth it and reaping the benefits that come from that kind of mental outlook. CaptivateTeacher.com presents some advice you need to consider.

Care for your body

The first step to practicing radical self-love through self-care is to treat your body like the temple that it is. Wash your face, and clean your skin. Show your body you love it by giving it healthy nutrients and improving your posture. By balancing the foods you eat and making sure you’re getting enough of the good stuff — even if it’s a quick, on-the-go nutrition bar or protein shake — you can make your way to being more balanced in other parts of your life, as well.

Exercise is also a great way to relax and get your physical self in the right place. Yoga, in particular, has been proven to have mental health benefits as well as physical. As long as you work on doing movement that is meaningful to you, that will have a positive impact. And a yoga practice doesn’t have to be long — even just 20 minutes every morning can be beneficial.

Care for your mind

“Talk to yourself like you would to someone you love,” educator and self-love enthusiast Brené Brown once said. Treating yourself the way you treat your loved ones is a learned art, but it has a real impact on your mind. After all, you should love yourself. You are who carries out all the day-to-day activities of keeping yourself afloat.

Your mental health is just as important as physical. Getting a good night’s sleep, practicing mindfulness, and learning how to put your needs first — in other words, learning how to say “no” — are all integral parts of mental health care.

Care for your environment

Self-care is also exhibited in the way you treat your home. Keeping a clean home helps you keep a clean mind, and has been shown to decrease anxiety — there is some truth to the adage that clutter in the environment often leads to clutter in the brain. Maintaining a stress-free environment is key, and there are several ways you can ensure that your surroundings aren’t contributing to your anxiety. For one, you should spend some time decluttering. One room at a time will do it, even — small steps lead to big ones. You can also infuse your home with positivity by bringing in greenery like succulents, which have been shown to decrease stress.

One step at a time

When you get yourself right, you have more time and energy to devote to others. So when it comes to making sure you get the attention you deserve, you should consider the impact it’s going to have not only on your own psyche, but on your ability to support the people around you. Self-care can also lead to better productivity, among other important benefits.

Suicide Awareness

In light of recent events such as Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain's apparent suicides, I wanted to take a moment and talk about depression and mental health within our own industry of learning and design. 

So often L&D professionals are expected to be the positive face of the companies we work for. Much like entertainers or self-help speakers, we have to be 'on' from morning until night. If we wake up that morning and are not feeling great, there seldom is someone who can step in and cover for us. As an instructor or facilitator, you know that an entire classroom of people are waiting for you and if there was ever a profession where you were going to be judged by your appearance and demeanor, this is it. It is not as easy as some of us make it look.

When I first got into learning and design, I was a facilitator who was responsible for training across the country. The first time I got to go out and conduct training, it was exciting and new. I got to travel to other parts of my country for the first time and see places I might never have seen. 

Unfortunately, the novelty of traveling for work wears off very quickly and you are left with just the mundane parts. It's mostly living out of a suitcase, eating nothing but take-out food that a low per diem allows. I had to be the first to arrive and the last to leave each day. As I already mentioned you had to maintain a positive, professional demeanor, even when you woke on the wrong side of the bed. Afterward, I would return to my hotel room, dine by myself and often have nothing to do until it was time to go to sleep. Between cities I would often spend many hours in airports, again eating terrible food only to endure a multi-hour flight to the next city to conduct the same training all over again. I've never been diagnosed with depression or other mental health issues but I could see how these circumstances would compound the already difficult aspects of our life in L&D.

And even now that I have shifted from instructor-led training to eLearning design, there are difficult times. Much of eLearning design and development is completed in isolation. Companies don't always allow or can afford to have their designer, developers visit on-site locations to conduct a needs analysis. Instead, you are in an office cubicle staring at a computer screen for much of the day and your only connection to the outside world is email and voicemail. 

As a freelance designer, I can get stuck in my home for many hours and sometimes days at a time. It's important for me to put down my computer mouse and get dressed and go out and do something else for a period of time. There is more to life than just work. My wife and I make sure that two or more times per year we get on an airplane and go somewhere such as a tropical destination for a week at a time. If for no other reason than to relax and take it easy.

Of course, I understand that with depression, you can't just 'be happy'. But for those of us who have not been diagnosed with such issues, yet you suspect that you may suffer from mental health issues, please talk to someone. Maybe it's just a friend or trusted co-worker to start, but maybe that leads you to someone who can offer professional support. In addition, it's important for all of us to be aware of our friends and colleague's mental health and be there for them in their times of need. Find out what support systems are available at work or in the community.

Here in Canada, we have the Suicide Prevention Service: 1-833-456-4566 and in Quebec we have the Association québécuise de prévention du suicide: 1-866-APPELLE. If you are outside of Canada please take the time to find the equivalent support system for your community and make sure you have this information on hand for yourself and your colleagues.