Self-Care 101: Prioritizing Your Own Needs and Well-Being

Prioritizing oneself over others may seem like a simple concept, but it is often challenging to put into practice. Despite our knowledge of the significance of self-care, shown by our purchases of books, participation in courses, and even wearing the T-shirt, we still find ourselves consistently placing the needs of others above our own.

Women, sorry guys, bear the brunt of parental, domestic, and family responsibilities in addition to their professional obligations. Our societal norms have ingrained in women the innate instinct to respond when those we hold dear require assistance. Tragically, the one individual whose needs we tend to neglect is our own.

A quote, "Choosing your hard," was shared by a friend with me this week. Prioritizing self-care is hard. Coping with a chronic illness is hard. Choose your hard. It is a sobering fact that heart attacks claim more lives among women than any other disease. Chronic stress, disease, and cancer are caused by many variables, stress being one of the top. Choose your hard!

When we do something difficult, we must first admit that it is important to us! We need to take small steps to change our approach to life. We must confront those we love who may block this change. We must be kind to ourselves when we fail and neglect ourselves.

But, there is a big but! If we don’t take self-care seriously, we can’t eliminate stressors from our lives. We can't sleep well as sleep requires peace. Therefore, we risk illness and burnout. Join me on this difficult journey of putting yourself first, falling along the way, and getting back up to live the life we ​​all deserve!

Who's in?