Self Care vs After Care
Self Care vs After Care
What most people think is self-care is actually aftercare - massages, vacations, workouts, etc.
Self-care is preemptively taking care of your needs to prepare you for life.
Aftercare is rejuvenating or replenishing care after you’ve depleted yourself.
When working with clients, I encourage them to incorporate self-care practices throughout their day. I’m usually met with resistance, and I’m told that they “can’t” during work hours. So, they feel they either have to cram self-care in before or after work, or maybe on their lunch break if they’re lucky enough to get one…
This is bullshit.
Self-care practices do not have to be elaborate, expensive or time-consuming…
The most effective self-care practices cost nothing & take very little time to do. Things such as mindfulness, deep breathing, moving your body, getting water, etc. These practices can literally take less than a minute, but they need to be done consistently & frequently to be effective…
Set a timer on your phone, or watch, to go off every 45-60 minutes. When it goes off, stand up or move your body… go get water, go to the bathroom, stretch. Do whatever feels good. Before you get back to work, close your eyes & feel your body… take 3 deep belly breaths.
It has been shown that productivity has a sharp decline after concentrating on a task for 40 minutes continuously… working on something past that point, without giving your brain a short break, has diminishing returns. You’ll be much more effective stopping what you’re doing for 2 minutes & letting your brain refresh by doing these practices… plus, you’ll regulate your nervous system to be more relaxed. From this state you’ll be able to be more creative & you’ll be able to access your logical mind better… and, you won’t be completely depleted by the end of the day.
If you’re saying “I can’t do these things all day while I’m at work.”…
Then I’ve got news for you - you’re in an abusive relationship with your job.
I said what I said.
If you aren’t allowed to get water when you’re thirsty… it’s abuse.
If you aren’t allowed to go to the bathroom when you need to… it’s abuse.
If you are allowed to eat, move or breathe for 8+ hours a day… it’s abuse.
These are basic human needs & if you’re not meeting those needs you’re engaging in neglect & abuse.
I would encourage you to ask yourself “Who says I can’t do these things?”
Very often we create a story that others are preventing us from doing the things we need to do to be healthy & happy…
But, when we get really honest with ourselves - it’s us. We’re the ones that believe we can’t do these things, but in reality, no one else is standing over us cracking the whip…
We are the slave-drivers in our lives, because we’re tying our worth to our productivity.
Your worthiness for existence is not based on anything you do - your worthiness for existence is proven by the fact that you’re here… you’re alive in this body - a body designed to receive continuous care. By denying your body the care that it needs to be healthy, you’re being ungrateful for the gift you’ve been given… so, why would you be rewarded with a long, healthy life? You were given this one body to live in throughout this lifetime - take care of it.
If you do not make time for your wellness, you will be forced to make time for your illness.
You think you don’t have time for self care now? Keep avoiding it, and you’ll be shown how much time, energy, money & effort it will take for your aftercare.
Stop abusing yourself. You weren’t meant to live this life burnt out, fatigued, unhappy & working yourself to death. You were meant to live happily, healthily & feeling well even while kicking ass at work.
XO,
Stacie