S is for Self Care in the New Year
S is for Self Care in the New Year

It’s the same story every year. New Year, New You. Proclamations of various types of self-care fill our minds, conversations, and the media we consume. Sure, the new year is a fresh start. But in light of the year all of us just experienced, maybe the best form of self-care we can give ourselves this year is giving ourselves a break.
Self-care as a trend doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. And with good cause! Caring and loving yourself should be an important part of every adult’s life. We all need to practice caring for ourselves to promote our physical, mental, and emotional well being.
But beware, it can be easy to become overly wrapped up in caring for yourself in a nonproductive way. It isn’t always about facials, bubble baths, and weekend beach getaways. It can be about that sometimes. But it also can also be about getting enough sleep every night, and drinking enough water every day. It can be setting boundaries with answering work emails at night, or only meeting up with your friends for happy hour once a week, even if it’s virtual! Self-care should be about what serves you and nothing else.
That being said, maybe we need to take a different look at what self-care means this year. Perhaps we need to forgive ourselves for not being as productive as we should have been. Maybe, rather than berating ourselves for gaining weight during a stressful time this year, be happy for the health you do have and focus on ways to stay healthy. Maybe a reframing of our minds can be just what the doctor ordered.
Of course, only you know what’s best for you. So with this upcoming new year, challenge yourself to look beyond the typical types of self-care and dig deep to see what kinds of care your self truly needs instead.