What Is Self-Care And Why Is It Important: A Beginner’s Guide

What is self-care?

Let’s start at the heart of the matter: What is self-care?

Self-care is, quite simply, how you take care of yourself. It is as easy as this. Self-care encompasses all the habits, activities, and choices you make in your everyday life to care for yourself and support your mental, physical and emotional well-being. 

Self-care is how you look after yourself. After your body, mind, and spirit. And what steps you take to lead a more balanced life where you don’t feel like you’re about to collapse and fall apart at the seams.

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Why is self-care important?

In our current society, stressful and disconnected lives have become the norm. Being stressed, anxious, and overwhelmed has become so prevalent and normalized that no one is surprised anymore that so many people suffer from burnout and health issues caused by this constant onslaught of stress.   

Because we’re so busy living chaotic lives, we often neglect ourselves in the process.

It is easy to forget to look after ourselves in favour of all our daily responsibilities that seem to require our most immediate attention. But if we don’t start looking after ourselves at some point, it’s inevitable that sooner or later we’ll reach a breaking point. Burnout then becomes inevitable.

This is where self-care becomes essential. 

Clinical studies have shown that practicing self-care is good for you. It helps you feel grounded, recharged, and supported. It also helps shift your energy and attention back to your health and what matters most. In a way, self-care is a lifeline that helps you survive life’s chaos, daily stress, and all the other unpleasant stuff life throws at you.

Practicing self-care is how you can return to yourself, reconnect with your body, your mind, and your emotions. Taking care of yourself is not selfish. It allows you to feel centered, peaceful, and even a little happier and in control.

The truth is that you cannot live a healthy, balanced life if you don’t take care of yourself.

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What are the different self-care PILLARS?

So, what are the key areas of self-care?

Experts often group together 7 self-care pillars. Each one of these represents a core area of your life. If your routine is meant to be well-rounded to be effective and properly support you, it is only logical that it would address and touch all of these.

Here are the key pillars:

1. Mental

2. Physical

3. Emotional

4. Spiritual

5. Social

6. Environmental

7. Financial

As you can see, there is one pillar for every major life area. Ideally, an effective and well-rounded routine should touch most of them, at least to some degree (depending on what you need).

These pillars are important to remind you that looking after yourself is more than just “Instagram aesthetics” or trends. A strong self-care routine is meant to support your entire well-being — and not just one piece of it.

Also, by focusing on multiple pillars, you avoid neglecting one area of your life and or over-focusing on another.

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Where do I start?

Starting self-care is where it can become slightly tricky–especially for beginners who feel lost and overwhelmed. I mean–who wouldn’t?

With so many methods and habits and activities and tips and guides and routines floating around, it can be difficult to swim through all of this and figure out where to begin. How to plan and build your self-care routine.

Fortunately, starting can actually be easy. You just have to start with what you need most.

Look at your life and notice which part needs it the most. Your answer is your starting point. Start from there. Focus on this one first. And keep it simple.

Ask yourself:
What area of my life needs the most attention right now?

That’s your starting point. Then start with this one area, and keep it simple.

This is the secret to looking after yourself. Simplicity.

You simplify and focus on what matters most.

From there, if you want to expand your self-care routine and practice, you can do so easily. Try new habits and activities. This exploration can be quite fun, and in time help you figure out what helps you and what doesn’t. This is a great way to make self-care your own, while keeping life fun and refreshing.

When you try new activities: notice how they make you feel. How impactful they are. Ask yourself:

• Do they help you? 
• Do they make you feel better? 
• Do you notice improvements or not? Are they making a difference? (For this you might need to give it some time to be certain.)
• Do they have a positive impact?

Keep whatever works for you. Don’t hesitate to let go of what doesn’t.

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How to build a self-care routine that works for you?

If you want it to work for you, and be as effective and supportive as it can be, you should build a self-care routine that is personal, flexible, and realistic. These three points are the most important ones.

The process for building a routine is simple. It contains only 4 simple steps.

The 4 simple steps to build your self-care routine:

1. Identify your needs
2. Set clear goals
3. List the supportive actions or habits to achieve them
4. Follow through

Easy peasy. And you can follow these 4 steps whether it’s a for a daily, weekly, or monthly routine. They remain the same for each one.

Bonus Tip: 

Be flexible. Do not hesitate to adjust and adapt — especially for a longer routine. Because, unlike for a daily plan, with weekly or monthly plans, time passes and life happens. Your needs and goals could change and evolve. And your self-care should always adapt with it to really support you.

For more help: How To Create The Perfect Self-Care Routine

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I don’t have time – what do I do?

Obviously, lack of time is one of the biggest obstacles for many people. But again, the solution is the same. Simplify.

Keep it simple. I can’t stress this enough. Simplicity will really make everything so much easier. 

Start with one achievable task. Focus on one goal at a time. One step after the other.

Ask yourself:

• What do I need most today?
• What’s the one thing that would make me feel better? Or that I really, really need?

This is where you start. And that’s enough.

Reminder: a bit of something will always be better than a lot of nothing. So even if you are super busy and just have around 5 or 10 minutes, this can be enough to make a difference. It will be better than nothing.

If you’re struggling with a busy schedule and need some help, check this: 5 Easy Self-Care Tips for Busy People

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What are the 5 key self-care habits?  

While self-care is highly personal, and everyone’s journey is different. Yes, there is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’. However, there are some essential core habits that form the foundation of any effective routine. Or, as I like to call them: “the self-care core”. These are foundational for a strong and well-rounded routine that support you mentally, physically, and emotionally.

The only 5 key self-care habits you really need:

• A morning routine
• Nutritious foods
• Daily movement
• A bedtime routine
• Enough sleep

These are the basics – the self-care core –  for a well-rounded practice.

If you succeed in consistently practicing these 5 self-care habits on a regular basis, then you’re already doing great! Incorporating these into your life is also a great way to lay a groundwork for a supportive and sustainable routine you can count and rely on when you need it.

To learn more: The 5 Self-Care Key Habits

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3 Last Important Things To Remember

1. Self-care isn’t always easy. And it isn’t always pretty. 

With all the information out there, and all the pretty posts,  it is easy to think that taking care of yourself is all about the aesthetic and indulgence. But it’s not. It isn’t meant to be an Instagramable trend. It is not meant to be pretty. Real self-care isn’t always candles, bubble baths, or spa days.

At some point, looking after yourself means taking a shower after days spent in bed. Cooking a simple meal (and not the most nutritious one) because you’re so exhausted you can’t do anything more complicated. 

Self-care means nurturing yourself. Especially when you need it most. 

It is also not about emptying your wallet to feel good or better. (This doesn’t mean that you can’t and should never treat yourself or self-indulge! Everyone needs and deserves pleasures and joys every now and then.) 

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2. Self-care sometimes means pushing yourself.

Sometimes (many times) taking care of yourself requires effort and discomfort. This is the most unpleasant side of an effective practice, but perhaps also one of the most essential ones. 

Taking care of yourself means forcing yourself to do stuff you don’t feel like doing, and that you have to do anyway. You have to push yourself and do it anyway because this is what you actually need. 

Looking after yourself sometimes looks like this:

• Cleaning your space even when you don’t want to
• Doing the pile of dishes
• Doing boring ‘adult stuff’ like admin or finances
• Running errands
• Setting boundaries

It’s not always enjoyable, it may even feel like chores—but it’s necessary.

So yes, you have to clench your teeth, square your shoulders, brace yourself, and do it anyway. They’re also acts of future kindness to and for yourself. It also means looking after your “future you.” If you do the unpleasant things now, your “future you” won’t have to.

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3. You can’t do everything at once

You can’t do it all. This is just a fact.

Yes there are 7 pillars. And yes, a balanced routine should ideally focus on most of them. But it should also be realistic, so you can’t possibly address all 7 of them every day. This is unrealistic and unsustainable.

So how do you prioritize which one to focus on? You check with yourself. You tune in how you feel.

• Physically exhausted or groggy? Prioritize physical self-care
• Emotionally drained and tired? Try emotional self-care
• Spiritually disconnected? Explore spiritual self-care

Simply let your current needs guide your next step.

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BOTTOM LINE

So that’s it. I’m curious to know how you approach your own self-care practice, and how you incorporate it into your daily life. So if you have any tips or tricks that you’d like to share, please, don’t hesitate to do so in the comments below. 

I hope you have a nice day. And remember, be kind and patient with yourself. Life can be difficult, but whatever is going on — you’ve got this!