Self-Care - Dr. Sangeetha Madhu, Aayesha Bano and Neha Vishwakarma

Self-care, or practicing to take care of ourself and our body, is an essential part of taking care of oneself. It is a process of engagement in multidimensional strategies to promote healthy functioning and enhancing well-being. Regularly fueling your body with healthy, nutrient-dense food and taking care of your basic physical and mental health needs is a part of self-care.

There are a number of domains that one can cover to ensure care of mind, body and spirit. These include:

·      Physical care: This would include having a healthy diet, getting enough sleep, indulging in required physical activity, and taking care of illnesses and ailments appropriately.

·      Mental care: This might include doing things that keep us mentally sharp and active, for e.g., solving puzzles, reading a book, or any activity that keeps the mind engaged and intrigued.

·      Emotional care: This would involve dealing with uncomfortable emotions like anger, anxiety, or sadness. This can be done by indulging in activities that help one acknowledge and express one’s feelings regularly and in a safe space, or in activities that help processing emotions.

·      Social care: This includes maintaining close connections with friends and family, by investing appropriate time and efforts in the relationships.

·      Spiritual care: Nurturing the spirit is equally important, and that can be practiced by involving in anything that helps one develop a deeper sense of meaning and understanding of self.

Self-care can be practiced in many ways – from ensuring a good night sleep every night and an early morning walk every day, to consulting a professional for healthcare. Self-care helps to build resilience towards stressors in life that one is unable to prevent. Having an effective self-care routine can lead to a number of benefits such as reducing anxiety and depression, improving happiness, increasing energy, reducing burnout, developing stronger interpersonal relationships, finding a sense of purpose in life and also increasing the overall quality of life.

References

Martínez, N., Connelly, C. D., Pérez, A., & Calero, P. (2021). Self-care: A concept analysis. International Journal of Nursing Sciences, 8(4), 418–425. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnss.2021.08.007

Mental Health America. (n.d.). Taking Good Care of Yourself. https://mhanational.org/taking-good-care-yourself.

Scott, E. (2022, May 23). 5 Self-Care Practices for Every Area of Your Life. Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/self-care-strategies-overall-stress-reduction-3144729