The Power of Self Care

Today's topic is one I share near and dear to my heart. Self care is something that has truly helped heal my body, mind and has been a tool to shape the life I live today. Now, self care means more then just getting a bimonthly mani & pedi or making sure your hair doesn't start growing in all sorts of ways. I'm talking about a deeper level of self care. Learning to truly love yourself and build a bond to your truest self; the core of who you really are.

Just like we are advised to put our own oxygen mask in planes during an emergency before assisting anyone, the same analogy is used in my day to day life. What use am I to others if I am not honouring my needs too? The more you practice self care, the more you readily available you can be to help others around you.

I didn't always think of self care as I do now. Before I thought of that mani pedi as a means to "look good". I was always taking care of myself so that I'd feel a sense of approval from the world around me. This outlook has changed over the years with daily practice, constant learning and finding ways to "bring me home".

I'd say this journey really took a turn during my yoga teacher training. Over this training we practiced different meditations, how to heal/express ourselves through yoga (not just the Asanas/ postures but the Yamas and Niyamas/ yoga lifestyle). My deeper understanding of this gave me the tools to start living a better life. I also was continuously reading books upon books on meditation, lifestyle, health and spirituality. I felt such an urge to unravel the mysteries of who I was and why I was put on earth. After a recent 10 day silent meditation course, I learnt more about this then I could have ever imagined. It truly was the best thing I could have ever given myself, but I'll keep this experience for another post.

With this being said, here are my tips and tricks to practicing the joy of self care <3

1. I'd suggest reading books such as: The alchemist, The 4 Agreements, A New Earth or any other books from Eckart Tolle for that matter as a start to learning about "you".

2. Do something, ANYTHING that makes you feel connected. Whether that be yoga, meditation, a walk in nature or a warm bath. Explore different things, learn and have fun with it.

3. Don't take yourself too seriously. It was hard for me to express myself when I started exploring this topic. I felt weird talking about "spirituality" or even doing yoga because I was more concerned about what everyone else was doing, comparing myself and never thinking I was enough. This concept of not being enough was, and still is from time to time something that I am faced with. The sooner you connect the sooner you will start to not give a hoot about what others think.

4. Do what feels good. Back to not comparing and looking at what others are doing, get in tune with what your body is telling you.

5. Become conscious of the foods you put in your mouth. Our food becomes our cells and the body we live in. It's important to feed it with love. Making meal time a precious time for yourself can help create more awareness about what you eat. I am not telling to cut anything out, I hate doing that and rarely ever do. Instead, think of adding nutritious things in and watch as things naturally get eliminated with time.

6. Breathe and fall in love with the journey. Any changes in our lives take time. Change can be hard, stressful and uncomfortable but learning how to deal with the discomfort is part of the magic. Embrace the changes, the ups and downs and keep going. Consistency is the only thing that matters. Don't freak out if you started meditating and your goal was to do so everyday for 10 minutes. One week goes by and you are killing it. The next week is overwhelming with work and you don't have time to sit with yourself at all. Instead of freaking, assess the situation, figure out ways to keep improving and continue living. The fact that you are taking the steps to leading a better life is so unbelievably wonderful. And always remember, the only constant, is CHANGE.

7. Be grateful. Thank yourself for taking the plunge on this self care journey. You're amazing!!! A wonderful practice is to write down three things you're grateful for every night before you get your beauty sleep.

Do it for yourself and start with one thing. You deserve to live a life filled self love.

Own it. Live it. Share it.

Lots of Love,

Renelle B