When we look at why we don’t have a self-care routine we usually find that:

• We were not taught to do so.
• That we have low self-esteem.
• We don’t set healthy boundarieswith others.
• Plus we have forgotten that loving ourselvesjust that little bit more than we do another is important.

Perhaps we have gotten so busy, and stressed, that we are just too tired to stop and think about what we are doing to ourselves.

When we learn to put into place a basic self-care routine we also put in place an ability to look after ourselves. This builds our self-confidence, reduces our stress, anxiety, etc. It also has the knock on affect of building our resilience to cope with the everyday ups and downs. Really there are quite a number of benefits to setting a basic self care routine. But what is one really basic reason we should have a basic self-care routine?

It Teaches Us To Set Boundaries.

It really is that simple. We learn to set healthier boundaries with ourselves and with others. You might think how can that be? But even using some simple small self-care steps can help us to regain our ability to have healthier boundaries. Then we can also build better healthy relationships with others.

If we have been finding it difficult to do this for ourselves, even taking the time to reflection will be an important first step here. So reflect now on how you feel, what you love to do, and what you want to continue going forward in your life. This reflection will allow us to see everything we do, who we do it for and perhaps help us see it’s time we allowed others to take responsibility for their lives and to grow-up. It’s time for some energy and time to be spent on ourselves in the form of a basic self-care routine.

By starting a basic self-care routine we learn to respect others. Even if at first they are not too pleased with you, you are showing them you deserve respect too. Plus you are respecting that they can look after themselves. It allows us to show others we are as equally important as they, and their needs, are. It is not a selfish thing to do.

We can also learn better self-compassion. Stop comparing ourselves to unrealistic ideals. Usually when we are not looking after ourselves in a healthy manner we people please, can be codependent, perfectionist, etc. Our boundaries are not too healthy. So adding in some basic self-care allows us to be more self-compassionate and to stop the comparison game. We begin to feel more confident about who we are. Then we are finally ready to set some healthy boundaries.

We Are Allowed Time Out.

A self-care routine is about understanding we are allowed time out for ourselves and meeting our own needs also. It’s about using the time spent on our basic self-care routine as a boundary. That means we can also use this routine as a means of resetting on high stress, low or anxious days. Important to recognize when we have been people pleasing, codependent and perfectionist.

On these types of days and we all have them, we can reset our ability to cope. We do this having a collapse point in place. We create this collapse point by using three suggestions from our basic self-care routine. Get enough sleep, eat a balance diet, and take some form of exercise daily. These are the things we need to keep us balanced and which we have decided will be our collapse point. In other words it is the bare minimum we will do each day and week for ourselves to keep our physical and mental health in balance.

Remember by even doing something small each day you will feel a lot better than doing absolutely nothing. It will help you reset your healthy boundaries. Plus it’ll also help keep that nagging voice in your head from being so critical.

My Book.

In my book, The Building Blocks Of Self-Care, I provide easy and quick strategies to get you back feeling rebalanced and more focus in your life. The book also includes all the worksheets you need to take you step by step through the process. You can purchase it on Amazon or through my website.