What Do Therapists Do For Self-Care?
Self-care is such a buzz word right now. While that makes me happy that as a culture we are placing more value in mental health, the word has also become watered down. #Selfcare is the mainstream version for self-care. It is doing masks, painting one’s nails, retail therapy, and fancy vacations. Self-care is not just for the rich or the Instagram-able. It is something for everyone, and is a lot broader than one would think. It is simply about putting one’s self first and making it a priority to do activities that nourish our mental health.
Below you will find a therapist’s version of self-care…if that therapist were me. I hope to demystify the sometimes intimidating concept of self-care, and to encourage you to find routines that work for you!
1) Friendship…also known as social support
It might seem counterintuitive to name other people as part of your self-care, but social support is an important part of everyone’s self-care. We as humans are social creatures that benefit from the relationships in our lives. Yet, when we get depressed or anxious, we tend to isolate. Forcing myself to invest energy into my friendships, to make time for them (even if it is another round of Jackbox), is an investment in myself and leads to overall better functioning. Next time you want to cancel plans, ask yourself if you are investing enough energy into your friendships right now!
2) Meditation
I am more than happy to admit that I thought meditation was not for me. I would recommend meditation all the time, but I just figured I was not one of those people that seemed to benefit from it. I thought I was too neurotic, too NY for it! Due to chronic migraines, I finally gave Tapping (EFT) a try, which is a type of meditation that stimulates accupressure points at the same time. I am a big fan of their app which also gives you a place to track how well the meditations are helping you. Not only does my tracking suggest I benefit from it, but I definitely am more prone to being cranky when I skip some days!
3) Artistic Outlets
As a prior performer, I consider myself an artist too. I do not work professionally in the arts anymore, nor do I desire to, but that does not mean I do not benefit from artistic outlets still. I started some creative journaling during the pandemic, which is a fun way to add closure to the day. In addition, I took up trying some new arts that I usually would not dedicate time to. I took up various types of needlepoint which I have been loving. It is nice to have an outlet to be creative just for myself. Even if you do not consider yourself a creative type, you can still benefit from creative expression. And if you already are an artist, trying out another artistic outlet without any pressure can be therapeutic in a different way than your work.
4) Exercise
One of the first types of self-care to go for many, including myself. I found it difficult to exercise without the gym, and let this self-care activity go to the wayside. Now that gyms are opening up again, I am lucky to be able to jump into this self-care again (slowly but surely). There are countless studies on the benefits of exercise for mental health, and my personal experience certainly confirms it for me. In addition, when you start thinking of exercise as a tool for your mental health, you are able to better address some of the pressure that working out is about achieving certain physical results.
5) Therapy
Shocking to see a therapist recommending therapy right?! I kid, but many people are actually surprised that therapists seek therapy too. Perhaps this is because of the idea that only people who are crazy go to therapy (obviously a fallacy), or perhaps it is because they think by being able to help others we should be able to solve all our own problems! Therapy is not just about solving problems though, it is about having support to go through the ups and downs of life. I could go on and on about this topic, but I will simply say that acknowledging that you need extra support is nothing to be ashamed of. Letting go of the pride means letting in healing.
Hopefully seeing this list will help demystify self-care, and encourage you to make it more of a priority in your life, or revamp your routine all together! During the pandemic, I really had to make a lot of changes to address the stressors of the world. It is OK to need more support right now, and it is ok to have to put more work into yourself to just feel “normal” again. Feeling stressed, overwhelmed, and sad about what is going on in the world is not only understandable, it is healthy. It is healthy to feel negative feelings when bad things happen. What is also healthy though, is finding ways to improve our overall wellbeing, and investing positive energy into ourselves.
Let me know how your self-care is going, and see you next time!
