Self-Care
What is Self-Care?
Self-care involves the promotion and care for both personal and professional wellbeing, which addresses all aspects of self including the emotional, physical, social, and spiritual self (Glennon et al., 2019). Engaging in self-care is necessary in order to manage burnout, protect your wellbeing, and create balance between professional and personal life (Glennon et al., 2019; Lee, 2017).
So, how do we engage in self-care? Well, creating a self-care plan is the first step. Here, we suggest the following plan to increase self-care engagement and address the physical, mental, relational, and environmental health of oneself.
Step 1: Focus on Body & Physical Care
When it comes to body and physical care, several coping strategies can be used such as: mindful eating practices, cooking, prioritizing adequate sleep, body scans, exercise or moving your body, especially activities that promote conscious relaxation such as yoga (Salloum et al., 2015). It is also important to note that whichever self-care strategy is implemented into your plan, consistency and active practice of said strategy is vital in the success of the plan (Sansbury et al., 2015).
Step 2: Focus on Mind & Mental Care
Incorporating self-care strategies that address the mind and mental care is vital, especially those that incorporate mindfulness and self-reflection (Glennon et al., 2019; Lee, 2017). Utilizing meditation as a method to increase mindfulness, self-reflection, relaxation, and emotional care will be of utmost importance in many individuals' daily self-care plan. Mindfulness techniques, such as meditation or journaling, and other mental care supports such as attending therapy or reading self-help books are also great options.
Step 3: Focus on Relationships & Relational Care
Maintaining healthy relationships and personal and professional boundaries is another essential component of self-care and maintaining overall wellbeing (Lewis & King, 2019). Spending time with people whose company you enjoy, including friends and family, and participating in activities that bring you comfort and social connection are all vital pieces in relational self-care (Dorociak et al., 2017).
Step 4: Focus on Physical Environment Care
Taking care of your physical environment at work and home will also aid in developing a strong self-care plan. Self-care techniques such as tidying up one’s space, cleaning, and organizing, can serve as relaxing, mindful activities that help to reduce stress and potential burnout (Rivera-Kloeppel & Mendenhall, 2021). Cleaning your physical environment while listening to an audiobook often serves as a relaxing and enjoyable activity at the moment, while also resulting in a clean space that allows you to feel relaxed and comfortable. Taking care of your physical environment through cleaning also serves as a self-care strategy that can be completed in solitude. Engaging in self-care through solitude is just as important as engaging in self-care with others (Lewis & King, 2019).
How might you incorporate these strategies into your day?
References
Dorociak, K. E., Rupert, P. A., Bryant, F. B., & Zahniser, E. (2017). Development of the professional self-care scale. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 64(3), 325-334. https://doi.org/10.1037/cou0000206
Glennon, A., Pruitt, D. K., & Rouland Polmanteer, R. S. (2019). Integrating self-care into clinical practice with trauma clients. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 29(1), 48-56. https://doi.org/10.1080/10911359.2018.1473189
Lee, R. (2017). The impact of engaging with clients’ trauma stories: Personal and organizational strategies to manage probation practitioners’ risk of developing vicarious traumatization. Probation Journal, 64(4), 372-387. https://doi.org/10.1177/0264550517728783
Lewis, M. L., & King, D. M. (2019). Teaching self-care: The utilization of self-care in social work practicum to prevent compassion fatigue, burnout, and vicarious trauma. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 29(1), 96-106. https://doi.org/10.1080/10911359.2018.1482482
Salloum, A., Kondrat, D. C., Johnco, C., & Olson, K. R. (2015). The role of self-care on compassion satisfaction, burnout and secondary trauma among child welfare workers. Children and Youth Services Review, 49, 54-61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.12.023
Sansbury, B. S., Graves, K., & Scott, W. (2015). Managing traumatic stress responses among clinicians: Individual and organizational tools for self-care. Trauma, 17(2), 114-122. https://doi.org/10.1177/1460408614551978