JULY: Self-Care Month
Self-care is not interchangeable with self-indulgence nor is it being selfish.
Self-care means taking care of yourself and your well-being so that you can be healthy, you can do your job, you can help and care for others, and you can do all the things you need to and want to accomplish.
Engaging in a self-care routine has been clinically proven to reduce stress, improve concentration, minimize frustration and anger, increase happiness, and improve energy.
There are 7 pillars of wellness to focus on: Spiritual, Intellectual, Emotional, Physical, Social, Environmental, and Occupational, and each with their own set of self-care actions.
Spiritual
Spiritual Wellness does not need to mean spiritual beliefs, but it can. It is our personal core values, and ethics. Self-care actions to support your spiritual wellness are gratitude journaling, meditation, prayer, yoga, spending time in nature or going to a place of worship.
Intellectual
Intellectual Wellness is the development of personal and professional knowledge and skills. Intellectual self-care actions include reading a book, listening to a podcast, watching a documentary or entering an internet search rabbit hole.
Emotional
Emotional Wellness is the ability to successfully handle life's stresses and adapt to change and difficult times. We can try to ignore, deny, and suppress our emotions; but eventually they come out. Journaling, speaking with a therapist or coach, practicing gratitude, and mindful meditation are all actions that can help you bring awareness, identify and nurture your emotions.
Physical
Physical Wellness is listening to your body in order to maintain a healthy quality of life. Physical self-care includes how you're fueling your body, hydration, how much sleep and physical rest you're getting, how much physical activity you are doing, as well as, attending medical and dental appointments and taking any recommended medication, vitamins and supplements.
Social
Social Wellness is maintaining a healthy relationship with ourselves to extend it to others by being mindful of how we manage our meaningful relationships while preventing social burnout. Social self-care actions are reaching out to your supportive network, meeting up with friends, date nights, participating in healthy communication, as well as enforcing personal space & boundaries.
Environmental
Environmental Wellness enhances your personal wellness and the wellness of the world around you as well as creating an enjoyable personal environment. Environmental self-care is the practice of taking care of your environment by picking up trash, decluttering, volunteering in your community, planting a garden and who could forget, reduce, reuse and recycle.
Occupational
Occupational Wellness is the importance of satisfaction and meaning through work by nurturing and using your individual gifts, skills, and talents in order to gain purpose, happiness, and enrichment in your life, and successfully integrating your choice of work into a whole lifestyle that is rewarding, and happy. Self care actions would be to do work that you find motivating and interesting, as well as, prioritizing and managing tasks around your home. Self care actions would also include taking a break from work for social gatherings with friends or colleagues as well as participating in workplace wellness program.
Sacred Space is pleased to hold space and offer a mentorship group with weekly virtual Women’s Wellness Calls. Where women can come together to discuss their self-care needs, plans and frustrations, as well as, discuss in depth each pillar of wellness and the self-care actions associated with them.