Compassionate Self-Care In Any Context

Continuing this week’s focus on practicing self-compassion by addressing mental health concerns that arise in the workplace (and/or beyond, especially if you are someone who our present, unprecedented circumstances have caused to be out of work at present), today we’re considering self-care methodologies that are surefire ways to provide yourself with moments of respite. If you’re currently down in the dumps, it can be easy to feel like you don’t deserve kindness. But we encourage you to treat yourself kindly, exercising the same sort of compassion that you’d extend to all of your colleagues. Though the tips from the pros that we’re highlighting below won’t magically change the world overnight, they’ll allow you to achieve a feeling of relief in these tumultuous times. 

We appreciate this quick, easy, and free method for mood boosting from Kenya McCullum at Learn to Become: “Drink water. People who are suffering from anxiety and depression often neglect basic self-care activities, including drinking water. Staying hydrated at work can go a long way toward helping people concentrate and stay centered, which may reduce the effects of stressors in the office.” We keep mentioning this suggestion because we need to remind ourselves, too! If you’re reading this, pause what you’re doing and take a sip of water. Also consider other activities you may have allowed to fall by the wayside: for instance, have you eaten yet today? Staying properly hydrated and fueled will help boost your mood. If you’re struggling to attend to these tasks, don’t feel ashamed–when you’re struggling with mental health, these small tasks can seem like huge obstacles. Our job is to serve as your cheerleaders, to offer you friendly reminders and insights. And today, as your cheerleaders, we’d like to remind you that you have the strength to drink some water. Please do so!

The pros at Beyond Blue also offer up a tip to help you exert a bit of agency amidst our current, chaotic circumstances: “Set boundaries for ‘me time’. Put some time in your planner to recharge and not think about work. Turn your phone or emails off during that time to allow yourself to have a proper break and pursue something that will help you unwind. This should be a daily thing – whether it’s time for family, friends, exercise or watching TV.” Just like making a to do list, setting up a schedule will also allow you to break down nebulous entities into manageable, concrete increments. Setting a reminder on your phone to take time for yourself can also help provide you with an extra push to actually engage in an activity that brings you joy. Don’t worry about feeling indulgent. We know that even if you are currently unemployed, there are still job-hunting tasks and other chores that you’ve needed to attend to. You may not feel like you’re allowed to have fun. But you are! So, please don’t punish yourself. Instead, let yourself do something you love. Doing so will provide you with an extra boost to help you keep going, within your workplace or beyond, and enable you to practice compassion to all those you encounter along the way. 

If you’ve made it this far, stop what you’re doing and take another drink of water. Now, welcome back! Throughout difficult periods (and now is an especially difficult period in time) it can be easy to forget to prioritize your needs. Making sure you’re hydrated and fed is the first step in pulling yourself out of a bad mood. Once you’ve met those basic needs, make sure you’re also taking time to unwind, to rest and recharge, and to put some mental distance between you and whatever it is that is upsetting you. It’s more than okay to turn off the news for a bit, and to instead put on a fun TV program or some music to dance to. Leaning into what brings you cheer will help keep you going, and is a great way to practice compassionate self-care. Join us again tomorrow as we finish off the week on a positive note with our Feel Good Friday: Compassion edition.

Image retrieved from Pixabay under the public domain.

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