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Verywell / Julie Bang
Welcome toThe Verywell Mind Podcast.Im Amy Morin, LCSW.
Youre listening to the Friday Fix.
And the fun part is we record the show from a sailboat in the Florida Keys.
Now lets dive into todays episode.
Today Im talking about self-care mistakes.
You might be thinking how can there be a wrong way to engage in self-care?
Its essentially anything that you do to take care of your health.
That includes your physical and psychological health.
So self-care strategies are pretty broad.
This seems pretty straightforward right?
So how could you possibly make a self-care mistake that will actually leave you feeling emotionally exhausted?
Well, here are five big self-care mistakes that will do just that.
Mistake #1: Being reactive instead of proactive.
Self-care involves being proactive about how you schedule your time.
Block off time to do things you love or just to have some alone time.
Or to ditch your family who is depending on you because you need some time to yourself.
Youll harm your relationships and your reputation if you arent dependable.
Mistake #2: Calling the things you do to look better self-care.
But her self-care appointments involved manicures, pedicures, hair salons, and lots of cosmetic procedures.
She didnt find any of those things to be relaxing or enjoyable.
She found them to be expensive and stressful.
But she thought she was engaging in self-care.
But, not everyone loves those things and theyre really only doing them for other people, not themselves.
Going to a chiropractor or to get a message to help you feel better are examples of self-care.
But you dont have to call those things self-care to justify doing them.
And it adds more stress to their livesand it isnt really self-care.
Mistake #3: Thinking self-care is supposed to always feel good.
The things that improve your health arent always fun to do.
You arent going to feel like exercising sometimes but thats self-care.
And you arent going to feel like pushing yourself to do hard thingsbut that can be self-care too.
Remember, its not always about what makes you happy right now.
Sometimes its about doing uncomfortable things now because its good for your health in the long-run.
Working out when you dont want to is self-care.
Pushing yourself to go to a support group when youre terrified to do it, thats self-care.
Waking up early to get some time to yourself, thats self-care also.
So keep that in mind, self-care isnt always going to be pleasant.
It all depends on what your goals are.
So its important to know what you oughta do to take care of yourself in your life.
You wont always get it right.
Sometimes, youll step back when you really needed to step up.
But thats all part of learning more about yourself.
Sometimes though its tempting to feel pressure to do what other people are doing.
But if youre struggling financially, hiring someone to do your household duties isnt good self-care.
Sometimes those things seem a little conflicting.
An exotic vacation might be good for your mental health but not your financial health.
Mistake #5: Using self-care as an excuse to self-sabotage.
But what they were really doing was self-sabotage.
But sometimes your brain lies to you.
Healthy self-care should leave you feeling better in the long-run.
If youre making some self-care mistakes, though, youll end up feeling emotionally exhausted.
Keep in mind, that some periods of your life are going to require more self-care than others.
But think of it as an investmentinvesting in yourself is never a bad idea.
[OUTRO]
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