First, determine what you need. We all need sufficient amounts of sleep, physical movement, and adequate food. So, ask yourself what you need and what you want. Next, decide what you can do in your spare time, and then organize your time accordingly. Scheduling your appointments helps you allocate specific time to take care of yourself during the day and to organize other essential activities. Also, be sure to eliminate obstacles and focus on the things that promote positive behaviors. Finally, be clear with others about your time.
Do you feel like you're so busy that you don't have time to think about your own needs, let alone do anything about them? You might think about working constantly or worry about not proving yourself or your worth if you're not available 24/7 (especially if you're working remotely).
Perhaps you are busy with child care, elderly care, pet care, or other family obligations, or you may be involved in the usual life tasks of paying bills, keeping your house clean, and running the day-to-day chores. So, how do you make time for yourself, your health, and your needs when you are always busy?
1. First step:
Stop, take a deep breath, and understand that the responsibility to save the world does not lie on you. The people around you can often help a lot if you simply ask them to by assigning responsibilities to them both professionally and personally. In some cases, you have to clear your mind and trust that everything will be fine, even if you don't do some of the tasks on your list perfectly, or if you don't do them at all.
2. Second step:
Permit yourself to take care of yourself. If you put off caring for yourself until you have fewer tasks, or until your kids are back to school, or your house is in good shape, or until some other circumstance is just right, you may never be able to get there. However, if you stop for a while and take these steps, you can start taking care of yourself, even when you feel like you're in a never-ending cycle of responsibilities at home and work.
1- Determine what you need:
When it comes to health and happiness, different people have different needs, but there are some universal truths. We all need the basics of sleep, physical movement, and adequate food. To be successful, most of us need to spend quality time with other people, time in nature, and some time to do something that brings you joy.
Take a moment to determine what you need and what you want, and ask yourself:
- How many hours of sleep is enough for you to be alert throughout the day?
- What type of physical movement makes you feel good and pain-free?
- What kind of food keeps your energy and makes you feel satisfied?
- Who are the people you enjoy spending time with?
- How do you find ways to enjoy the outdoors?
- How do you communicate with yourself?
- What activities make you happy (a hobby, reading, volunteer work, or something else)?
There is no need to be embarrassed by your needs, as they are your right, and it is also good to have desires, even when your life is perfect.
2. Determine what you can do:
At certain points in your life — when work is taking up a lot of your time and you're organizing your children's education remotely, or you're going through a major change, like moving to a new place — you may not be able to do everything you want to take care of yourself, but you can still do something.
Think about what makes sense given your current situation, for example, it might not be possible to train for a marathon at the moment, but you could take half an hour to run a few times a week. Maybe you can't guarantee you'll sleep through the night because of your little ones, but you can go to bed an hour earlier to give yourself some extra time, or maybe you can't see your friends in person enough, but you can call them while you cook dinner or while doing some tasks. Take a look at your schedule as there may be some free time.
3. Organize your time:
If you feel that there is always a lot to do, you will need some time to take care of yourself, and in doing so, you will give yourself clear permission that this is the most important and most appropriate thing to do right now. Scheduling helps you know when you can take care of yourself during the day and how to organize other essential activities with it.
For instance, you can set your alarm to remind you when to sleep and that it is a priority, and you can devote some time in the morning to do a sport you like and another time to spend with your family and friends. You can also allocate time to reading during lunch or next to your child before bedtime, and you can take a short nap or meditate during the rest period or go for a walk with the family after dinner before you watch TV. Moreover, you can assign a few nights to eat out, so you can use your cooking time to get a job done or do a workout.
Think carefully when you want to prioritize caring for yourself, where caring for yourself doesn’t only revitalize you, but also it can motivate you to stop wasting time on unsatisfactory activities. It's not tempting to browse social media in the afternoon if you can use those few minutes for a quick meditation, or if you know you need to get your work done by 5 p.m. to exercise before dinner.
4. Prepare yourself:
To achieve this, you will need to decide that self-care time is sacred and that you will continue to take care of yourself, which means eliminating obstacles and focusing on the things that foster positive behaviors. For instance, if you want to exercise more, clean the treadmill and gather your favorite exercise videos, or sign up for gym classes where there is a penalty if you cancel it at the last minute. If you want to eat healthy food, prepare a weekly grocery list that is suitable for preparing nutritious foods, get rid of unhealthy foods from your kitchen, and leave the option of snacks or takeaways for busy days. You can also join a challenge that pushes you to take charge of your self-care goals and receive support or even rewards for achieving them.
To reinforce positive behavior at the moment, think about the details in advance. For example, you can put your workout clothes on the edge of your bed to save time before you go out, or install an app on your phone and computer that turns off the device at a certain time to remind you to get enough sleep. Remember what you're doing and why it's important to you, and when you're tired or feel unmotivated, you will have the courage to keep going.
5. Being clear with others:
Finally, come to terms with others. If your partner tends to stay up late watching TV, tell them when you need to watch a show you like, and then go to sleep. If your children are up early and are conscious enough to play safely on their own for a short time, explain that you'll work out, read, or have a cup of coffee on the balcony in the morning, and they can join you if they like, or they can play until you're done.
Set similar limits at work. If someone suggests an early morning or late night meeting and it's negotiable, ask for the time that best fits your sleep schedule or other self-care measures, and if you find yourself always receiving last-minute requests from your manager or clients, talk to them about the possibilities, and if you can be aware of their needs in advance? Can the tasks be assigned to you earlier? Can deadlines be negotiated? To have enough time to take care of yourself, you will need to advocate for yourself and your needs to make this happen.
We can't guarantee that you'll feel comfortable, but you can take these steps to make sure you focus and care about taking care of yourself every day.
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