WHY SELF-CARE SHOULD BE YOUR TOP PRIORITY

As women, we tend to take the whole world on. We are employees, employers, mothers, aunts, spouses, partners, nannies, teachers, nurses, caregivers, chefs, tech support, and on and on. We don’t just wear one hat… we wear many of them, if not all of them, and sometimes all at once.

A lot of the burden is put on our shoulders and we bear it all. We are the ones that generally make the sacrifices and put ourselves on the back burner. Meaning, that we don’t focus on our personal needs, which ends up suffering in the long run.

Filling Our Own Cup

How is it possible to give to others when we aren’t filling up our own cup first? It is impossible to be able to give when we don’t initially have? And I’m not talking about becoming self-centered. I know of someone who decided one day she was tired of giving everything to her husband and her kids. Unfortunately, she went the opposite and is narcissistic to the point where everything is ALWAYS about her. Don’t go crazy like that!

As we fulfill our needs, we are able to give more freely and willingly to others, and more importantly to those we care about the most. What I’m talking about is, finding balance in your life. Not becoming self-consuming and not giving everything you have, without boundaries.

Balance In Your Life

When we don’t put our needs first, mentally and physically, we then become unhappy, resentful, and angry. We then lash out at others or feel like we have lost ourselves and our purpose. We don’t find joy and that inner peace we crave.

TAKE THE TEST AND FIND OUT YOUR STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES:

Finding Life’s Balance: Take The ‘Assessing Your Life Balance’ Test

Our lives, as women, need to be well-balanced. That means physically, spiritually, intellectually, emotionally, socially, and financially. When we are balanced in these categories of our lives, we feel our cup is full and truly balanced.

How To Balance Your Life?

Take the test linked above and determine where you are lacking in your life. This is a good place to start. By knowing where you need to focus more of your attention, you begin to feel at peace with your inner self by fulfilling what you are lacking. This significantly helped me since I was unaware of where to even start.

Maybe you need to focus on your intellectual side and that means setting aside time for you to read each day. Or maybe you are lacking in your physical needs, then make a goal to do yoga for 20 minutes each day. Whatever you need mentally, spiritually, or physically is important to find out and nurture it.

Allow For Change

Your needs change just like the rhythmic seasons, nature, and even the moon. Be willing to understand that your needs are not always the same and how they may change monthly, weekly, or even daily.

Take each morning to tap into your needs before getting out of bed and before you pick up your cell phone. What do you need today that will help you fill your cup and then in turn give to those you love. It could simply be a nice relaxing bath. One that helps you mentally let go of your day and physically let your body enjoy being alive! Life’s too short… enjoy it.