Self Care helps me get centered–grounded in my well being. When I approach my day this way, I have a better experience of life. Circumstances that would normally send me over the edge are easily handled and life moves on. I have experienced a major shift in my life because of practicing self care.
We are taught that the world is an outside in deal–that things outside of us make us happy. When I get this thing I’ve always wanted, then I will be happy. The truth is that happiness is ALWAYS an inside out job. This is why self care is crucial. Michael Neill says, “We think we are experiencing reality but what we are really experiencing is our thinking.” Making Self Care a habit has definitely helped me with my thinking.
Self Care is a very personal practice. You have to find the right combination for you, but I will offer you the same starting place that was given to me.
These four Self Care thoughts come from Bill Cumming. His organization is called The Boothby Institute. Bill recommends spending time each morning thinking about these four main points and then reading a couple of pages from authors like Marianne Williamson, Don Miguel Ruiz, and Greg Baer, whose books reinforce the main ideas of Self Care.
Self Care Thoughts
- We live in a miracle.
- We are ALL interconnected.
- The ONLY thing I can control today is the way I CHOOSE to BE in the world.
- Be gracious with yourself.
When I first started self care, I thought about these four thoughts and then tacked on The Four Agreements too.
- Be impeccable with your word. (Don’t use your words to hurt yourself or others.
- Don’t take anything personally. (Nothing others do or say is because of you. It’s their own drama.)
- Don’t make assumptions. (Don’t assume you know what others are thinking or that they know what you are thinking.)
- Always do your best. (Your best changes from day to day.)
Doing self care that way worked for me, but now I do it differently. I pray about the Self Care thoughts and then pray about whatever else I want to pray about. It just seems natural to me in thinking about the miracle of life, to thank God for it right then and there. That may or may not work for you. There are no rules. I only know that taking time to dwell on those four points does make an incredible difference in the way I experience a day.
If you find yourself in the middle of the day ungrounded–do self care. It makes sense that if it works in the beginning of the day that it would work in the middle too.
I want all of us to go through our days with MORE JOY, MORE PEACE, and MORE POWER and Self Care is a very effective way to do so. I created a one page Self Care Guide that you can print off. I use it from time to time to help my wandering mind stay focused. I even skip around from one section of the page to another as my thoughts roam, filling out whatever part of the page the thought fits into.
In addition to the Daily Self Care Guide, here’s a link to an AMAZING video that leaves me feeling like I’ve just done Self Care every time I watch it.
I hope you enjoy these resources and please feel free to share them with others!
Sarah Boucher happily encourages women to grow in their power daily at I Am A Powerful Woman. Come join the conversation there. If you have questions regarding the 12 week program What One Person Can Do or the online version What Every Person Can Do, you can get in touch with Sarah here.
