Hello Lovelies:
Everyone faces some forms of difficulty in their lives. Whether it be a physical or mental illness, a personal loss, financial strain, or something that can’t even be explained, we all have our own battles. No matter where we are in our journey, or what we’re facing, an awesome self care plan is the best way to make sure that we’re able to weather the storms.
A self care plan has been has been a key factor in my ability to thrive with Graves Disease. And you deserve to thrive in your circumstances too.
Not quite sure where to start? Here are the key components of an awesome self care plan.
How to Create a Fantastic Self Care Plan
Finding ways to listen to your inner voice and give your body, spirit and mind what you truly need is one of the most important steps to healing and being well. The following are my ways of taking care of myself and making sure that my self care routine supports my well-being.
If the idea of creating a self care plan feels overwhelming, I have a free Self Care Routine Planner that can help you get started.
Practice Self-Love
You do so much for the people you love. You root for them, you care about them and you are inspired by them. Why is it so difficult to do this for ourselves? Self care means finding a way to provide yourself with what you need. In order to truly do that you need to build a foundation of self-respect and self-love.
Whether or not you are facing a difficulty, self-love is a beautiful way to take care of yourself. In our society we are often led to believe that we are not good enough. We aren’t the right size or weight, our hair should be a different colour, we aren’t beautiful, our interests aren’t normal, and the list goes on. It can be difficult to feel any confidence in who you are when you aren’t who you think you should be.
How many of you have told yourself that you are not good enough recently? “I look fat”, “I can’t leave the house without makeup”, “my nose is too big”… When was the last time you told yourself that you were good enough and that you love yourself exactly the way you are?
Incorporating self-love into your daily life is a must for the sake of your mental, physical and spiritual well-being. Here are a few ways to do it:
Practice Gratitude (Gratitude journaling, positive mantras, extending gratitude, etc.)
Make time for the thing you enjoy
Find Self Care Activities that make you feel Awesome (here are some of my faves)
- Dry Body Brushing
- Detox Baths
- Face Masks
- Exercise that you truly enjoy (yoga is a daily must for me)
- Oil Pulling
- Meditation
- Deep breathing
- Rest and relaxation
Take a self-inventory
- Listen to what your body, heart and mind are telling you
- Assess your health and your needs
- Discover and indulging those needs
Go easy on yourself
- You can only ever offer your best and that is enough
- Growth and change take time; be patient with yourself
Accept yourself now, even if you feel like you aren’t good enough.
- Tell yourself that you accept yourself as you are. You may not believe it at first, but speaking positively to yourself and about yourself will help you build on those beliefs.
Create a Team
I know that relying on others seems a little silly when we’re talking about creating a self care plan. But we all need help sometimes. Difficulties are easier to face when you aren’t alone. And allowing yourself to be vulnerable and seek help can be the ultimate form of self care. You owe it to yourself to build a team to help you along your way.
Your team should consist of people you trust, people who love you and people who can help. My team members include:
- My amazing family
- Wonderful Doctors
- Reliable friends
- My pets (Cuddles for stress relief and support)
- A registered holistic nutritionist
- Anyone who inspires me
Anyone can be part of your team: a massage therapist, a yoga instructor, a counselor or anyone else who can help you along your journey. Everyone will add different values to your group. Some help with your healing progress, whilst others provide an ear and a shoulder when you need it. Take inventory of your needs and be honest with yourself. Relay your needs to the team members that can help.
Participate in your Healing
Your health belongs to you, so you owe it to yourself to participate in your healing. Become an active participant in your health care. This is especially true if you’re dealing with a chronic illness like Graves Disease.
Your health is precious and it belongs to you. Doctors can be a wonderful help, but they are partners in your health journey; you need to be part of the team. Being an active participant in your own healing can ease the stress of waiting, the fear of wondering, and the anxiety of being lost. Here are a few ways to participate:
If you’re dealing with an illness or frustrating symptoms, keep a (temporary) food and symptoms journal
- This may help you find links between what you eat and how you feel and can be an awesome diagnostic tool to share with your doctor.
Research
- Learn everything you can about whatever it is that you are facing
Come Prepared
- Bring a list of questions to your appointments
If possible – find a doctor that you feel comfortable with
Keep up with test results
- Being aware of your progress can help you plan your next steps
Feed Yourself with Kindness
Give thought to what you allow on or in your body (your thoughts, food and drink, hygiene products, etc.). Toxic thoughts, foods and even self care products can all be a huge burden on your beautiful body, spirit and mind and weaken you from the inside out.
Here are my ways of consuming only what serves myself and my health.
- Eating organic, local (when possible), real, unprocessed foods
- Using natural/organic products for beauty, cleaning and anything else possible
- Cooking for myself and my family
- Using essential oils and beeswax candles
- Choosing organic makeup (I personally love Zuii)
- Doing research before choosing any food, household or beauty products (This is a great source)
- Practicing self-love (see above)
- Catching any negative thoughts and discovering their source
Take Baby Steps
Most people can’t go from 0 to 100 in a day. Whatever changes you decide to make, set attainable goals and go easy on yourself. Be proud of your achievements and learn from your mistakes. Take your time. It can take a while to create a self care plan that sticks and works well for you.
Do not measure your own success by the success of others. As Theodore Roosevelt once said – “Comparison is the thief of joy”. Your journey and someone else’s are not the same. The only path that you can walk on with true success is your own, so don’t stumble around trying to follow someone else’s trail.
Believe in yourself and you are halfway there.
Health and love,
Thought of the day: I will take care of my thoughts and my needs. I will listen to my heart and believe in myself. I am the hero in my story.
