Self-care is the practice of taking action to improve your health. We can do this regularly or just from time to time, but it’s important to turn this abstract concept into a concrete goal. Self-care communicates to your mind, body, and soul that you are valued, so concentrate on giving back some love to yourself!
There are six domains of self-care including physical, professional, relational, emotional, psychological, and spiritual that you can decide to nurture.
- Physical self-care is taking care of our physical body. This domain is about getting back to basics.
Top tips for physical self-care: Eat regularly and in a way that nourishes your body; exercise regularly; boost your sleep.
- Psychological self-care takes care of your mind. This might include seeing mental health professionals or simply engaging in activities that recharge your psychological resilience.
Top tips for psychological self-care: Turn off phone notifications; take a walk outdoors; keep scheduled therapy appointments; take time for reflection
- Emotional self-care encompasses your relationship with yourself. Check-in with your feelings and see how you’re doing.
Top tips for emotional self-care: Keep a journal; take time off; vent your frustrations; engage in opportunities to create happiness
- Spiritual self-care not only refers to religion, but also how you feel grounded and connected to your world around you.
Top tips for spiritual self-care: get out into nature; meditate; sing; engage in spiritual practice
- Relational self-care is connecting with others and engaging in communities. Even when self-isolating, we can still manage to connect. In fact, humans need to connect to thrive.
Top tips for relational self-care: Make regular facetime appointments with friends/family; take a socially distant walk in the park; accept help from others; take a virtual cooking class
- Professional or academic self-care is managing work balance. If your work/life balance has shifted since COVID-19, you’re not alone. You may want to revisit what your workplace/academic self-care looks like.
Top tips for professional or academic self-care: Set boundaries (turning off email notifications after a certain time); take lunch breaks; set timely project goals It’s easy to lose a sense of joy and excitement when life gets repetitive. As much as you love routines, you need to switch things up to prevent boredom and lack of motivation. After all, variety in life is important for avoiding burnout.
