Love Your Brain – Part 5: Care
This is the last part of my Love Your Brain series. Let’s do a little recap:
Today we’ll talk about self-care and social connections. Self-care is very important in our life, I can’t stress this enough. You should stop thinking it’s optional or a luxury for just a few. And no, it’s not a sign of laziness. Self-care is a daily practice that is necessary to reset and restore our body and our mind.
We’re all extremely busy in our daily lives, and we have a hard time to unplug and really enjoy special moments, even if it’s just for a few minutes. And we don’t know what we’re missing: by taking time off we can recharge and become better individuals in our personal and professional life. We cannot afford to be constantly stressed or pressured; our body and mind will be negatively affected and we will experience stress, bad mood, and burnout because of our sympathetic state staying constantly activated. Remember to prioritize YOU: you cannot take care of others if you don’t take care of yourself first.
As a holistic life coach, I work with my clients in different areas when helping them achieve their goals: physical, mental/emotional, spiritual, and professional. I start with the individual and then I move to the business person. There can’t be success in one’s career if body and mind are not balanced and working together. When their body and mind are aligned, my clients improve their well-being, optimize their mental health, and they reach their full potential.
When coaching my clients, I always incorporate ways to practice self-care in each of those areas so that they can live (and work) fully. Let’s take a look at these.
Physical Self-Care
In addition to eating healthy, sleeping, and exercising, physical self-care can mean a spa day, spending some “me” time or hanging out with friends, visiting a museum for some inspiration, watching the sunrise, or just doing nothing. Find a hobby you love, like playing sports, painting, dancing to your favorite music, or reading a great book, and involve all of your senses! This can all contribute to lower stress levels and to enrich your daily life.
Mental/Emotional Self-Care
Give priority to YOU in your personal and professional life. Say “NO” more often in order to focus on what’s most important, take a digital detox whenever possible, stay away from difficult relationships or negative situations.
Learn something new. This has been shown to promote neuroplasticity (the ability of your brain to change neural pathways) and neurogenesis (the creation of new neurons). Pretty cool, isn’t it?
Be more mindful by paying more attention to your thoughts and feelings. Journaling is a great activity as it can lift your mood and make you more aware of who you are and where you want to go in your life.
Also, don’t be ashamed to reveal your emotions, and most of all, accept them without any judgment. Let yourself go, cry if you need to, laugh when you want to, remove anger and fear from your day.
Do you have a pet? Awesome! Taking care of your dog or cat helps you find more meaning and purpose in your life, and you feel more accomplished (not including wonderful walks or runs with your dog as part of your physical self-care)
Spiritual Self-Care
Spirituality has nothing to do with religion, despite what many think. Instead, I see spirituality as the connection to our inner self, the development of our inner dimension which is essential for happiness, self-growth, and optimal well-being. It’s that inner energy that lets us guide our life.
Ways to tap into spiritual self-care include experiences that can make us feel good and improve our outlook about life, from removing negative energy to connecting with nature, honoring your beauty and uniqueness, celebrating you.
Meditation is also a great spiritual self-care practice, and it’s easier than you think. Even just a few minutes a day can make a big difference. And if you add affirmations that can give you greater purpose in your life, you can repeat them during the day whenever you experience a challenge or you feel blocked.
Professional Self-Care
This can apply to all of you! Whatever you do in your business, self-care is extremely important. Taking breaks during the day helps with focus and productivity. It’s as important as eating healthy, sleeping, and exercising. Our bodies and our brains are not machines. Unlike our electronic devices, we can only recharge when we unplug. We need to stop what we’re doing and dedicate time to ourselves that gives us pleasure, happiness, positivity. Even if you’re working on a project at work that gives you excitement, you still need to take a break to reset.
Research shows that most people can only concentrate for a maximum of 60-90 continuous minutes before needing to take a quick break to stretch, move, hydrate before they resume for another session. If you have the ability to enjoy the outdoors during your day at work, go for a walk during your breaks and take advantage of sunlight and nature for some Vitamin D and inspiration involving all the senses!
During your self-care practice, always pay attention to your breathing. Besides supplying oxygen to our entire body and brain (and getting rid of waste and toxins from them), it puts you in control of your emotions, stress, fears, and it allows you to have more clarity, be more productive, more present, and more intentional with everything you decide to do. Consciously breathing tells your brain that there’s no danger therefore, you can relax.
What is your favorite self-care practice? Share with us!
Need help with your daily life? Have a hard time changing your habits? Maybe you need someone to guide you and to keep you accountable! Schedule your FREE Clarity Call with me to see if I’m a good fit for your bright future!
As a Holistic Precision Life Coach and creator of the Life-Work Balance System, I empower ambitious professionals and high achievers like you to optimize themselves and unlock their full potential, fostering enhanced well-being and productivity in their lives and careers. I combine innovative methodologies (epigenetics, neuroscience, chronobiology, and positive psychology) to facilitate profound lifestyle transformations.
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