Self care is a term that we are so accustomed to these days. It is about taking care of yourself, doing whatever good for your well being, and whatever you enjoy. Depending on your particular needs at a certain time, you can incorporate different types of self care into your life. Let’s discover 5 basic types of self care and how to practice them in this article.
Table of Contents
Physical Type of Self care
This might be the very first type that we would talk about when it comes to self care. Physical self care literally means doing things to improve the well being of your physical health. Basically, you would think of doing exercises and eating good foods. However, not everyone enjoys doing these two things. Instead, we seem to be more tempted to “do-nothing” vacations and junk foods. If you fall into this case, be stricter with yourself by cutting down the sitting time and the amount of fast food. Also, try the following healthy activities so you can push your body to move with joy:
- Register a yoga or dance or swimming club.
- Go trekking or picnic with friends and family each weekend.
- Go for a walk or a run every afternoon.
- Drink more water.
- Try some new smoothy recipes.
Emotional Type of Self care
Emotional self care means exactly what it sounds like. It is all about dealing with your emotions and feelings. But wait, if you think we are meant to make sure that we need to feel good all the time, you are totally wrong. We are allowed to be sad, anxious, angry, disappointed, or lonely. We have the right to feel exactly what we really feel. The purpose of emotional self care is for us to handle those kinds of feelings so that we are not ruined by them. It also helps us to learn how to define our emotions, how to express our feelings and how to treat them as a friend of us. Some of the activities that can nurture you from the inside include:
- Journal writing – write down your feelings and emotions when you find it hard to confide in someone else.
- Find the root of the problems that cause your bad feelings and change them for the better.
- Talk to someone you trust. Sometimes, all you need is to be able to share what you really think.
- Develop some creative activities such as painting or cooking.
- Practice replacing the negative with positive self talk.
Spiritual Type of Self care
This type of self care provides you with methods to nurture your soul, your connection, and your understanding of the universe. It does not have to relate to religion even though studies prove that people with a sense of spirituality tend to have healthier lifestyles than those who don’t. Depending on your own set of beliefs, you can find different ways to engage yourself in spiritual self care activities. Below are some ideas for you:
- Practice walking meditation.
- Spend more time with nature.
- Reevaluate and assess your goals and values.
- Attend some religious services.
Intellectual Type of Self care
Nourishing your intellectual well being not only helps you to nurture your mind but also contributes to your practical and financial health. Practicing intellectual self care motivates you to expand your knowledge, challenge yourself with a higher goal and bring out the best of you. It is about figuring out your talents, improving your current skills, and upgrading yourself with new ones. When you can do this, it is also useful to locate your career path, thereby ensuring your financial wealth in the future. Think about the following activities to practice intellectual self care:
- Take up a new language.
- Read more books.
- Follow any interests that you enjoy.
- Share what you have with others as a way to practice and update it.
Social Type of Self care
Admittedly, we can’t live on our own in this universe. We need to live in harmony with other human beings to become better together. Those who are surrounding you have a huge impact on how you develop yourself. Therefore, it is important to keep a healthy social network. It means choosing the right people to have in your life, avoiding those who are toxic, and nurturing the relationships with your family and the ones you choose. Practice it with some suggestions below:
- Increase your dinner time with your family members.
- Hang out with an old friend.
- Throw a night party with close friends.
- Join some new communities such as a club or a class.
Don’t hesitate to try different activities to engage yourself in self care as much as you can. It is also necessary to have a periodical evaluation of your self-care time to make sure that you do not neglect any types of sel care entirely.
