Self-care is on its way to becoming a cringy term because everyone throws it around, but let’s talk about it while we are here.
The reason why I started thinking about this is because I have been feeling insecure and bad about my body and mind so I decided that I need to take care of myself.
It’s absolutely important for everyone to take care of their mind and body, but I have a feeling that self-care became a very superficial practice where we only take care of our body. I am the first to blame for this since my self-care involves a lot more body scrubs and face masks than meditation and reflection.
We’ve succumbed to this ideal of “look great, feel great” which couldn’t be further from the truth. While appearance is important, let’s not forget that “look great, feel great” comes with a lot of “buy this and buy that” so it’s safe to say that this self-care that focuses specifically on our body has been largely influenced by marketing campaigns and less by what people really need.
Why not talk about meditation, working out, self-reflection, writing diaries, reading etc., as important forms of self-care which might even come before taking care of our skin, face, hair etc.?
Prioritizing our mental health and taking care of our soul as much as we prioritize our looks would solve a lot of our individual and collective problems.
Doing self-care in terms of only taking care of what you see in the mirror is maybe more appealing because it can give instant results while you have to work for a very long time to take care of everything that’s on the inside. We became a society that wants everything and we want it now and we live in a world that allows a lot of our cravings to be met immediately but good mental health is not something that a food delivery app can bring to our door.
There is also the issue people have with comparing themselves to everyone else, even when it comes to taking care of ourselves. Self-care doesn’t have to be taking time off, going on a trip, spending a bunch of money on products or expensive therapists. Self-care can be cooking, writing a diary, spending time in nature, working out, cleaning, having great sex and so on. It’s about listening to your body, being aligned with yourself and giving yourself what you need.
How do you do your self-care?
Love,
Luna
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Self-care for me is meditation, reading, journaling and affirmations. I do all of these rituals daily. I loved this piece. You speak truth here and I agree with you 100 percent. Thank you for speaking.
I couldn’t agree more Luna. Self care is not just about what you do on the outside. It’s not just about looking great or appearing to look great but I think most importantly it is about how you feel on the inside. For me feeling good inside makes it easier to look great on the outside. I like the idea of taking care of me from the inside out. That’s probably why so much of my own self care practices involve activities like meditation, yoga, journalling and enjoying nature. Thanks for sharing this amazing post.
Entertaining video, Luna. Thank you for sharing your travels.
This is so true. I find it disheartening how society is normalizing “me first everyone else later, even at the expense of others; I will do whatever I have to to make self ‘happy’ “. Somehow self-care has become a dog eat dog world. Thanks for this piece.
Self care becomes cringe worthy when it’s confused with things that give us instant gratification. I like how your list did not include things like expensive bath bombs, massages and spas, delicious food, vacations etc. and instead included things like nature, journalling, homemade meals and self-reflection/introspection.
I completely agree with you.
Thank you for sharing. Sometimes when I share about self care, people make fun of me. But I’m trying to learn to live by a new mantra. What other people think of me is none of my business. Keep up the good work.
Beautifully written! Your blog puts up some great perspectives, you certainly have a way with the words!
Would love for you to check out my blog and let me know what you think! 🌸
Great post Luna…. and very very true.
So true ❤️ thank you for sharing!