Taking Time to Care for Yourself
By Sharon Aronovitch, PhD, RN, CWOCN, Lead Faculty Program Director, BS-MS
You find yourself juggling, work, home life, school, and a social life (if you have one), every day of the week. I’m sure there are even times when you have said, “Why are there ONLY 24 hours in a day?!”
I can relate to wishing there were more than 24 hours in a day and wishing my vacation would arrive sooner than later. We need to realize, though, that vacation is not the only time we should be taking care of ourselves, getting a bit of rest, and “chilling out.” It is important that you always make the decision to place yourself as a #1 priority. Otherwise, maintaining a constant level of high performance will suddenly disappear and it will be harder to keep up with what you are doing.
You can find lots of advice as to what is the best way to take care of yourself. There are suggestions to exercise, meditate, eat better foods, and stay connected with friends (but not through electronic devices). The number of ways to refresh yourself are too numerous to include in this blog post, but some are provided in the links below.
So, how do I manage, in my busy life, to take care of me? It’s easy: I do the things that make me happy, keep me connected to friends, and broaden my awareness of those around me through music, theater, and books. Taking care of me and enjoying these activities means I must take the time to schedule these events. So, my calendar reflects my weekly Monday night Mah Jong games, music concerts at the local university, and the many home basketball and football games at the local university. It might look as if my life is even busier, but what is most important is that I am taking care of myself by doing what makes me happy and fulfilled as a person.
Whitbourne, S. K. (2015, January 13). 6 ways to better take care of yourself. Psychology Today. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/fulfillment-any-age/201501/6-ways-take-better-care-yourself
Mental Health America. (n.d.). Taking good care of yourself. Mental Health America. Retrieved from http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/taking-good-care-yourself
Success. (2015, June 10). 13 ways to take care of yourself every day. Success. Retrieved from http://www.success.com/article/13-ways-to-take-care-of-yourself-every-day
