3 Misconceptions About Self-Care

In my discussions with clients, I am always surprised by the many self-care misconceptions that exist in our culture. Self-care is often viewed as being self-indulgent and a waste of time. As such, a lot of women struggle to make it a priority.

I define self-care as the intentional cultivation of practices that nurture and nourish you to being your best self. These practices will differ from person to person. The key is that you figure out what energizes you so you can, on purpose, bring those things into your life.

In the interest of you giving yourself permission to see self-care differently, I would like to dismantle a few self-care misconceptions.

Self-care is selfish

This is a big one! I hear from a lot of women, moms in particular, who struggle with making time for self-care because they believe it is selfish. They have bought into the idea that as a woman, it is your responsibility to sacrifice yourself on the altar of everyone else’s needs.

I call BS on that line of thinking because what I know to be true is that you cannot give to others from an empty tank. Your car will not run if the gas tank is empty. It might spurt along but you won’t get very far on fumes.

The same is true for you. You will be a far better mother, wife, friend, sister, employee, or business owner when you make time to fill your tank. You give to those around you from an overflow in your own life. Scraping the bottom of the barrel of your own energy serves no one.

Self-care is unnecessary

I used to believe this one. I didn’t so much think self-care was selfish, as I thought it was completely unnecessary. It seemed like a waste of time to be doing, what I saw as, Fru-Fru girly things.

I’m not a girly girl AND I like being productive. My idea of self-care was limited to things that I saw as standing in the way of my productivity and completely unnecessary for me because I am not a girly girl.

The problem was I had relegated self-care to a specific category of things. I saw it happening in only one particular way and, therefore, it was easy for me to label it as unnecessary.

But what I discovered over time is that there is no one category that defines self-care; self-care looks different for each person. When I starting putting into practice the things that allowed me to feel energized, I found myself being even more productive in my work.

Now I see that self-care is absolutely essential if I am going to have the level of impact I want to have in the world.

Self-care is a reward

Self-care is not a one-time thing. It’s not something you use as a reward for achieving a goal and never think about it again. This completely misses the point. Self-care is an ongoing practice that must be cultivated over time.

I suggest having a regular rhythm of self-care that has daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly components to it. Breaking your self-care down into these patterns helps ensure that it is happening on a consistent basis.

The thing to keep in mind is that your self-care doesn’t have to be big things, they can be small things you do that serve to nourish you. For example, an important of my self-care is my morning cup of tea. I don’t drink coffee but I might be slightly addicted to tea.

Enjoying a cup of tea each morning sets the stage for the rest of my day going well. When I don’t drink it, things feel off and out of rhythm. Therefore, part of my daily self-care is having that cup of tea.

You can establish your own rhythms by figuring out the things that energize you and being intentional about doing them. I’ve created a free resource to help you do just that. Your Soul Care Script is your personal prescription for keeping your tank filled up so you can be more effective in everything you do.

Grab this free download and start creating yours today.

Here’s to you moving past those self-care misconceptions and rising into your greatness.

From my heart to yours,

P.S: If you struggle with knowing how to incorporate self-care into your regular routine, I would love to talk with you. Click here to schedule a complimentary call with me. On this call, we will look at what it is exactly that has been standing in your way and how to get you moving again with self-care.