Breaking Free from Self-Neglect.

Out of everything that we learn in our lifetime, whether we do it willingly or not, one of the things nobody ever teaches us is how to gauge if we are taking enough care of ourselves. How does one ever find out if they are looking after themselves enough?

I mean, eating food, drinking enough water, sleeping for a healthy amount of time and maintaining basic hygiene is all well and good, but that’s the bare minimum that you can do for yourself. Self -care isn’t just about doing the bare minimum. It’s about making sure that you are physically, mentally and emotionally healthy.

And because we never know what the equation for a healthy balance is, we often tend to slip into neglecting ourselves. We deny ourselves basic things like a day just sleeping in, or a nice afternoon with a good book, or a good outlet for all the bottled-up stress such as a tiring workout. Honestly, who even has the time to do that, these days?

So, I made you a weekly checklist so that you could follow and practice a healthy amount of self-care, and break free from all the self-neglect, if you have been ignoring your own self lately:

Monday: Eat healthy food. 
Monday is basically a nightmare to everybody, and even more so to the people who haven’t paid attention to themselves in a very long time. So, the easiest way for you to break free from self-neglect will be to eat healthier. Start small if it’s a big change for you, and then gradually increase the healthy ratio of your diet to the not-so-healthy one. You’ll thank yourself for doing this someday down the line.

Tuesday: Practice Positive Affirmations. 
I made a list of positive affirmations that you can practice, should you ever want to write this down, or save it somewhere. Try telling yourself at least one or two of these every single day, and mean it. I’m hoping this will help you start your day on a positive note, instead of a negative one. Let whatever positive affirmation you give yourself help set the tone for your day.

Wednesday: Choose happiness. 
One day in a week, don’t let anything get in the way of your happiness. You’re allowed to be a little selfish when it comes to being happy. Get rid of toxicity, negativity, naysayers— anything and everything that comes in the way of your happiness. Be your own hero for a day, put on your favourite playlist, eat something you love, or hang out with people who bring positivity in your life. Remember that you are capable of making yourself happy. You don’t really need anybody else.

Thursday: Express gratitude. 
Choose one thing to be grateful about and focus your positive attitude around it the entire day. I know that sometimes, it is very difficult to have a positive outlook because everything else seems to be falling apart. But holding on to even the smallest thing that we are grateful for can get us through a terrible day. Besides, we’ll never run out of things to be grateful for.

Friday: Pamper yourself.
At the end of the week, it’s only fitting that you either soak your feet in a tub of warm water, or take a hot shower to relax, and then tuck yourself in for the weekend. It’s pretty much the perfect way to unwind and take care of yourself after a whole week of working hard. So, when you get home on a Friday, drop everything for an hour or two and pamper the self-neglect out of yourself.

Saturday: Go outside.
There is something about a good walk in the nature that has the power to de-stress your mind. If you don’t really want to step out, at the very least, open your windows and soak in some of that sunlight. Or take a breath of fresh air. Either way, try connecting to nature in some way, to help you get your mind off of whatever is stressing you out.

Sunday: Sleep in.
In short, recharge. Get as much sleep as possible because Sundays are meant to be spent sleeping in. Give yourself the rest that you couldn’t give yourself all week, and prepare yourself to face next week head-on!

I hope that my checklist helps you to break free of self-neglect in at least the smallest way possible! Let me know in the comments below what you do to break free of self-neglect when you catch yourself slipping down that road!

Look after yourselves, everyone!

Cheerio! Xx

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Yours truly,
The Shubhster.

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Featured Image by Danielle MacInnes on Unsplash