I have a self-care routine that includes a yoga practice, meditation, and Sunday bubble baths. I also maintain an active lifestyle that include dancing (salsa, bachata, kizomba), weight lifting, and rollerblading. I’m trying to add iceskating to that list, but I’m still warming up to the idea ;)
Dr. Sarah Spencer once said that self-care can be thought of as anything that is nourishing to us as a person (Hall, 2020). So I would also like to make the case that ice cream, doughnuts and cheesecake all count as self-care. Within reasonable limits of course :)
Furthermore, I think of self-care activities as preventative behavioural activation. Building a routine that includes exercise, time with friends and family, self-care, and activities that relate to a my values (Josefowitz & Myran, 2017) helps me to remain physically, mentally and emotionally healthy. I can’t very well help clients if I do not first help myself.
References
Josefowitz, N., & Myran, D. (2017). CBT made simple: A clinician’s guide to practicing cognitive behavioral therapy. New Harbinger Publications, Inc.
Hall, Peter. (2020). VPA NB [Audio podcast]. https://anchor.fm/peter-hall5