Hey, You! Yes, You! You look like an interesting person! Do you have a minute? Can you please tell me what makes that body that you reside in have life enough to function, regenerate, reproduce, maintain, and even abound? And tell me, where is home for your thought processes, your feelings, your dreams, and your emotions? Today let’s talk about why it is important to take good care of yourself every day. You can also read my article 10 Ways to Improve Self Confidence and Increase Self Esteem for more advice living your best life.
- Why Is It Important to Take Good Care of Yourself Every Day?
- Take Care of Yourself so You Can Fulfill Your Purpose
- 10 Ways to Practice Self Care and Feel Great About Yourself
- Get Adequate Sleep
- Exercise Regularly
- Eat Well
- Reduce Stress
- Learn to Say No
- Unplug From Work
- Limit News Reports
- Unplug from Social Media
- Laugh!
- Meditate
YOU are residing in the form of a multi-billion-dollar edifice -a body, a being, a marvel – one with not only a memory but a will to choose, a mind to create ideas, a body to find food and self-care – and that just touches the surface of not only your possibilities but of your eternal worth.
Take Care of Yourself So You Can Fulfill Your Purpose
You are a priceless masterpiece, created by God. You have a purpose, and you have potential to fulfill that purpose.
Are you maintaining this body that holds so much potential, that is so loved, that is the home of the real you? That body is filled with life, lungs that breathe, heart that pumps blood and oxygen, and a mind that is phenomenal.
You are the caretaker of that body. Without care, much of the potential cannot develop. We have a treasure to cause us wander and awe – the gift of life – given daily. You have been given charge of the most intricate of creations. Give it the maintenance deserved by the finest Bentley, the most modern spaceship, and the Titan, Cori, or other supercomputers. It is even more intricate than those, yet they also need constant care to function properly.
10 Ways to Practice Self Care and Feel Great About Yourself
1. Get Adequate Sleep
Your body is built to revive and restore with adequate natural rest. Most of us sleep in a deeper and more restful sleep if we maintain a schedule. We rob ourselves when we do not get a good night’s sleep – depriving ourselves of full performance ability and full enjoyment for the next day.
There will be unavoidable and overriding reasons where losing sleep will usurp a restful night. However, routinely practicing slowing down, meditating, shutting out the stimuli of the day, and preparing for a sensible bedtime will pay off in immeasurable ways.
2. Exercise Regularly
Perhaps exercise comes first in your life. Great. We do not all have to run marathons or look like Hercules to be fit. Thankfully, walking briskly 2-3 miles daily, doing stretching exercises and some light weight lifting can combine to be more than adequate to maintain a fit body, a more healthy attitude, and a feeling of knowing we look our best. Being in control of body fitness also gives us a feeling of being successful in carrying out our plans. We look better, we feel better, we function better.
3. Eat Well
What we eat affects us long and short term. A heavy diet of animal fat and sugars can make us feel sluggish as well as adding unwanted pounds. Long term, our diet affects blood pressure, heart health, joint function, and our circulatory system – literally every system in our body. Finding a satisfying and enjoyable variety of foods, while maintaining that diet, can improve your health, your measure of activity, your energy level, and your ability to accomplish other goals. It’s really all about making the right choices: it is not starvation. Give it a try.
4. Reduce Stress
We all roll our eyes at this suggestion. We are wired for stress – even literally with cellphones almost surgically attached to most of us. Notification dings periodically interrupt our train of thought with information of the latest tragedy or breaking news.
Our jobs may have become micromanaged by others whose job description is to micromanage. Stress produces stress. If you are the lead person in whatever size group, step back and re-evaluate your style of supervision. Strive to form a low stress atmosphere, allowing creative minds to flourish. If not, you may be pushing your best performer out the door.
Let’s try to reduce stress in our own life, thereby reducing stress in those closest to us.
5. Learn to Say No
We people pleasers find it very difficult to say no. And our managers learn that early on. The boss formulates the upcoming task in such a way to hook your people pleasing self to accept the challenge, even when your plate is still filled with other tasks.
We set ourselves up to fail when we accept larger assignments than we can handle. Learning to say no, or perhaps rather negotiating to find the task for which you know your aptitude and training will almost guarantee success, is a step toward maturity. Pulling a team together to contribute is stellar move.
It’s ok to say no. Even to overburdening social events. Or to serving on every committee at school or church. When the no’s balance the ok’s, a more balanced workload and competent leader emerges.
6. Unplug From Work
Make it a point when you drive into your driveway to disconnect from work. I know, many of us work from home; therefore, we need to draw an invisible wall around areas of time when we will disconnect.
No longer can we leave our work phone at our office. Our boss and counterparts feel anxious if we are more than a text away.
Children are at the dinner table online with their friends. If at no other time, have a basket in which to place turned off phones during the essential dinner hour. This is a time and place of binding families. Interruptions tear that uniting momentum down.
Show your kids that time with them is worth putting someone else off for thirty minutes. Expect the same in return. Each family member will learn the importance of listening and, above all, the joy of being listened to!
7. Limit News Reports
Set aside two or three times per day max to listen to the news. How many times do we need to hear the same thing? World and national news is often filled with terror and anxiety causing information. We are not meant for that 24/7. We need not know each detail to be able to form opinions, or to find targets for our prayers, while keeping reasonably informed. We are not directly responsible for causing or healing each and every problem.
The constant bombardment of world news may make us more tense and less able to deal with the events in our state, area, town, school, and home. Constant anxiety takes a toll on the physical, mental, and emotional health of us all. Unplug yourself. Get the summarizations. Tune in to what your spouse and children are telling you is going on in your town. Make a difference there. Be involved there.
8. Unplug from Social Media
Now – really? Is your FB friend’s sister-in-law’s first day of school more interesting than your own daughter’s tale of her search for a seat in her new school cafeteria? Or, if you are seeking to have a larger and more involved social life, why waste your time online with people you will never see. They only show you what they think will impress you. The current filters can make the homeliest look fabulous, with a bit of photo doctoring. (Remind me to have someone show me that latest trick!)
9. Laugh!
Oh, my! When did you really laugh? Out loud? A good old belly laugh? Until you had tears? The most relaxing thing in the world is to have laughter. The most beautiful sound in a home is of people laughing.
Laughter enhances intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases the endorphins which results in a feeling of euphoria, much like a runner’s high.
Laugh with family, friends, co-workers. Laugh with your dog as you run and play. Send funny clips to your college kids. Nothing says I love you better than taking the time to laugh with someone. Make time to play stupid games, backyard baseball, go skating, watch funny movies. These produce laughter, plus it makes me feel loved and my presence welcome.
Enjoy the funny story that a family member is telling – and don’t steal the punchline! Then laugh at yourself the next time you make a poor decision, knowing that you are not perfect, but you are getting there, and you are loved!
10. Meditate
Set aside time – a quiet time – with no extraneous noises or interruptions. Time for renewing and rebuilding, time for growth of mind and soul. It is necessary to step away from the cacophony of the world to mellow a bit, to connect with our God, to confess our sins and shortcomings, and be filled with truth and love and peace.
Without this daily time, we starve ourselves. The depths of our understanding and ability to reach out and help others is diminished.
This wonderful machine in which our life dwells is not meant to be alone.
It must have a connection with the Higher Power, the God of the Universe, the Spirit of the Lord Jesus. He is the source of our inner strength. This is where the bond develops that holds us together when we struggle in the hard times and when we help others in their struggles.
A daily time alone with God, a dose of His grace and love, maintains our equanimity and prepares us for the challenges that will be ours. His word is indeed Life. His presence is yours for the asking. The greatest gift you will ever receive. This is GREAT NEWS FOR YOU! The video below will open the door to believing and receiving that gift.
Enjoy this body and soul that is yours. Feed it. Care for it. Be thankful for it. Be amazed at what God, through you, will do to help heal this world, your world, and my world.
