Results of skipping self-care. The less we take care of ourselves the easier it is to become stressed. Increased stress and/or fatigue leads to increased illnesses and sicknesses, headache, stomach problems, sleep difficulties, depression and anxiety.
What is self-care exactly? Self-care is making sure to take care of your physical, mental, emotional well-being. Physical self-care could be things such as getting sleep, eating appropriately, exercise, getting proper medical attention and go to check-ups. Emotional and mental self-care could be journaling, relaxing, helping and serving others, or doing something else that you truly enjoy. Other ways of self-care might be turning your cell phone off for a short period of time, say no if you feel you are stretched too thin, spend time with supportive and uplifting people, and spend more time on leisure activities.
How do I start to integrate this into my life? All self-care takes is about 15-30 minutes a day. I am sure that there are a few things that you could cut out of your day in order to start to take care of yourself. It's also important to remember that in order to take care of someone else, you have to take care of yourself first. Sometimes it's ok to be selfish and take care of number one first.