
When was the last time you did something nice for yourself? I don’t mean when you stopped at a fast food restaurant and grabbed a treat because you were too busy to make dinner. When was the last time you did something for yourself that was truly replenishing, soothing, or joyful? According to 2021 survey conducted by Avergo, nearly three in five (59%) people will only practice self-care if they feel stressed.
In a world filled with illness, anxiety, and stress, self-care matters. Most of us have a busy schedule to juggle, we wear many hats and have others who depend on us. We were also taught that if we put ourselves first we might be viewed as selfish. This is a big problem, especially when you are already dealing with an illness, burnout or stress. When you take this self-sacrificing and excessively busy lifestyle too far, your efforts become counterproductive. You sacrifice sleep and now you cannot focus. You quit doing things for yourself and now your overall well-being is suffering. You ignored that stiff neck or back and now it will not go away. Somewhere in the midst of helping others, you lost the ability say no additional responsibilities or even social gatherings you don’t have the emotional capacity to partake in.


Self-care goes way beyond your physical well-being. It also involves your mental, emotional, social, and spiritual health. In the survey conducted by Avergo, respondents cited these benefits of self-care: self-confidence boost (64%), increased productivity (67%), and happiness (71%). Check in with the activities that drain you the most and identify the ones that give you the most energy or replenish you. Next week’s article will dive deeper into self-care, for now define what self-care means to you. What are the activities that will work for your lifestyle? Figure out what makes you feel relaxed and practice your preferred form of self-care to receive maximum benefits. Make an appointment with yourself and schedule time for your self-care activity.