Is Self-Care Selfish?

Is Self-Care Selfish?

In the modern world of not having enough time to go around, Is self-care selfish? , is a question often wondered by many. Burnout, mental illness and lack of self-care are all issues people face daily. However, the resolution is much easier than you think and much easier than the corporate companies and social media tell you.

What Is Self-Care?

When wondering is self-care selfish, you have first to question what self-care is and why it is so important. The NHS classifies self-care as "understanding when you can look after yourself". Self-care boils down to taking care of yourself for no one else's gain but your own. It is how you take care of your mental and physical health and help your body function correctly.

Who Should Focus On Self-Care?

The simple answer is everybody. You should complete regular self-care if you live, breathe, think, and feel. 

Why Is Self-Care Important?

There can be some days, weeks or months when you only focus on the world around you, whether that be your work, your family and friends or other things that take all of your attention. While this can be a good thing to keep busy and active, you often neglect self-care. Forgetting self-care can lead to mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety and fatigue. In addition, it can lead to other negatives like a decrease in hygiene, lack of sleep cycle and a poor diet and appetite. 

Myths Of Self-Care

Is self-care selfish? No. It is not. In the modern world, there are so many expectations of a person that taking time for yourself is almost considered rude and inconsiderate. However, this is not the case. Another myth about self-care is that it is expensive and can take a long time. This is just not true either. There are hundreds of ways to complete self-care without spending money or taking hours of your time. A final myth of self-care is that you only need to do it once every few weeks to almost reset yourself. Again, this just is not true. Self-care should be a continuous and ongoing venture that everyone should take on. 

Types Of Self-Care

There are four main types of self-care. All of these need to be completed regularly to achieve overall self-care. Depending on individual personalities and self-awareness, some can be more difficult to complete than others. Despite this, all four categories can easily be adapted to each person's preferences. 

Physical

Physical self-care is probably the most common form that everyone thinks about first. There are two main sections of physical self-care: the diet and the body. Diet is important because it is essential to supply the proper nutrients, vitamins and every other category of the food range. Without a correct balanced diet, your body can develop sicknesses and health conditions that can cause long-term difficulties. Self-care can help give your body the best chance at performing at its best. With physical body self-care, you focus on sleeping, rest and exercise. A lack of sleep and rest can affect your focus and drive for everyday tasks.

Emotional

Taking time to care for your emotional health is essential. Stress, being overwhelmed and anxiety are all factors in poor emotional self-care. Is self-care selfish? It would be selfish if you did not take care of your emotional health. It can put you at a disadvantage in society, your workplace and even with yourself. Kindness to yourself and others is vital for being successful.

Social

Self-Care in social aspects is the most difficult to achieve and maintain. Setting boundaries, having support systems, spending time with loved ones and asking for help are all positive self-care-choices that can benefit someone. Is self-care selfish? Social self-care can improve someone's life dramatically.

Spiritual

Whether religious or not, having a connection to the world around you is a form of self-care most people forget about. Taking your place in nature and accepting who you are without the pressures of the media or society is possibly the most basic form of self-care. Acceptance of yourself is vital to leading a happy and healthy life.

Self-Care Ideas

So what can you do to improve your self-care? Below is a list of five activities you can complete for free, quickly and routinely to improve all four types of self-care.

• Cry - Know that it is okay to cry. It can be healthy to let out built-up emotions and let it all out
• Say no - You have no obligation to anyone to overwork yourself. It is okay, acceptable and healthy to say no and set boundaries for yourself and others
• Eat, sleep, drink - You have to have a healthy routine of the basics in place
• 5-minute rule - You only have to get through the next 5 minutes. Then you can focus on the 5 minutes after that. And then so on and so on
• Do something for yourself - You should focus on doing something for yourself every day. Making your favourite drink, having your favourite meal or sitting in the sun for a bit longer. Do something for you.

Develop A Plan

Is self-care selfish? The answer will always be no for all the reasons above and so many more. However, it would help if you committed to yourself doing regular self-care. Creating a personalised self-care plan can be a help for this. There is no specific way to make a self-care plan. It is completely personalised to individual life, needs and goals. It would be best to consider what self-care tasks you want to complete. Additionally, you should include how often you wish to do the activities. Holding yourself accountable to the plan will help you track your achievements.