Take Care Always my friend. It’s like when you’re on a plane and the attendant reminds you to put on your mask first so that you can better help those around you. We must care for ourselves, in order to help others. I learned this lesson the hard way in my first years as a health coach. I prided myself on how whole heartedly I made myself available to my clients – unlimited emails, texts until bedtime, driving from home-to-home for outside clients between my clients at Equinox and Sony.
You know what happened? That lead me to burnout, because I wasn’t also caring for myself. I had to reassess how effective I was for them if I wasn’t caring for myself as well. What kind of example was I setting being frazzled and tired? My thyroid health was in jeopardy as was my sleep and overall happiness. I eventually met with an endocrinologist at Cedar Sinai who explained to me the importance of stress management. Although I didn’t think I had “stress” per say, I now know it comes in many shapes and forms. There’s good stress and there’s not so good stress, but our body reads stress is stress, no matter the kind.
Take Care Always My Friend …
Now I am much more aware of working on my own health in congruence with those I service and coach. I set boundaries like no emails after 5pm. No texts after 6p or before 7a. I turned my phone and iPad off an hour bed. I get more sleep. Here are my 3 favorite ways of getting self-care at the moment:
1. Taking my dogs for a walk– Fresh air and being outdoors does wonders for me.
2. Giving my body a treat – I’m obsessed with the Sephora brand face masks! I use them twice weekly and the scent and moisture left on my skin does wonders for my mood.
3. Learning to sit still – It is extremely hard for me to sit still unless I’m watching a movie, so I commit to weekly guided meditation and breathwork classes at a local meditation studio.
How do you approach self-care? I’d love to learn more for myself as well.
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