Part of the Journey to Healing Includes Self-Care

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As parents, husbands, or wives, we can easily get trapped in the cycle of our fast-paced lives, causing us to fall into the habit of giving up time to indulge in a little self-care. What do I mean about self-care? That’s when we take the time to do something for ourselves that makes us feel good, healthy, beautiful, or strong, even if it’s small moments of time we steal a day. Simply put, I have found that if I'm feeling good about myself then the rest of the family will feel it too. That feeling is contagious, and before you know it, everyone else is in a good mood.

I grew up in a household that indoctrinated the women in our home, myself included, with the motto that if mothers weren't sacrificing themselves into exhaustion for their families, then that was considered selfish and bad. That type of mindset was detrimental not only to my own health, but self-worth. I didn’t like feeling like a work horse, and I made sure others knew it too. Not only that, I developed some very unhealthy habits of eating junk food to eat that feeling away, making me feel more depressed and angry.

When I started taking positive steps to care for myself in ways that made me feel good about who I was, the atmosphere in my own home life changed. It wasn’t easy to get rid of years of indoctrinated mental scripts, and I admit that I still struggle with it today; for example, I have to prep myself to enjoy some personal "me" time without the guilt creeping up, ready to sabotage me. As I sit here at a Barnes & Noble typing this, I’m feeling guilty about having left the dog home alone. Seriously?! Yes, seriously.

I had to remind myself, “Relax, the dog is not going to die, Jax. You had a nice run with him yesterday evening, and took him to play ball at the local dog park right after. The dog isn’t going to commit suicide just because you’re not there, ugh! Do you see what I’m talking about? That type of neuroticism and negative self-talk is harmful, and there is no growth there when we’re spending our time sabotaging ourselves. But I digress…

Part of my journey to healing includes taking time for self-care, because feeling good about ourselves puts us in a happier state of mind. A happier state of mind promotes healing. Besides finding time to exercise, walk my dog, and write, I’ve recently gotten into taking magnesium baths (more about this on another post) and taking care of my skin. I never thought I’d live to see the day when I’d see that first wrinkle or dry, saggy skin, but that day finally arrived when I turned forty-five, and it hasn’t been pleasant to see it go down-hill since then, lol. Having an MTHFR polymorphism means that I also have to be careful with the amount of chemicals I add to my body that have the potential to build up in my system. Needless to say, I generally avoid most beauty products, not only because I’d have to sell an organ to buy the non-toxic ones—kidding! But I have found other natural ways that work just as well for half the price, if not less, like drinking lots and lots of water to keep my skin hydrated, for one.

This is one little indulgence, however, that I have found works very well, and it’s all natural. I like to do it right before bed, and it only takes about three minutes a day. Right after I shower I do the following treatment to my face:

I add a drop or two of pure, non-gmo Argan oil to a container I filled with raw, unprocessed
coconut oil, to my face, neck, legs, and shoulders.

Argan oil comes from the Moroccan nut and helps hydrate and soften the skin. Also, its high vitamin E and fatty acid content, gives skin a natural boost. Coconut is a natural moisturizer that has been used to treat eczema. It's a great treatment that leaves my skin feeling smooth and soft when I wake up in the morning—I’m not kidding! It feels terrific, even the husband will attest to that, ha!

I know life can keep us crazy busy, but I have found that if I take the time, even if it's only a few minutes like these, to do things that make me feel beautiful and happy about myself, then those are moments worth stealing throughout the day, especially if it helps my recovery to healing.

Do you take time for self-care that doesn’t include unhealthy habits? If so, share your ideas on your comments below.