When we are constantly surrounded by other people (be it family, colleagues, students, clients, patients, customers, whoever) neglecting our own needs can very quickly become normalised, often to the detriment of our own wellbeing. Especially as women and if we are mothers I find that we are almost socialised to look after ourselves once everyone else has been taken care of. Sometimes we find ourselves just too exhausted to do this and so we don’t get the quiet time to ourselves which is so important to keep us going.
We need this ‘ME time’ so in our busy lives how do we ever find the opportunity to implement this simple self-care strategy?
Here’s my suggestion:
1. Prioritise it and
2. Book it in
The rest is easy. Work out what the ‘ME time’ would look like for you. It doesn’t have to be the same each time and it doesn’t have to be the same for everybody (although a 10 km run would always be a welcome treat for me I understand how it could be another person’s hell). It could be taking a walk, going to the gym, reading, watching tv (that would be rarely be my choice), having a massage (or other complimentary health treatment), meditating, shopping…
How do you like to spend your “ME time?’
What do you have to do to make it happen?
Louiza Hebhardt 