Taking a self-care day after dealing with a particularly trying period in your life has never felt more vital or useful. Taking a step back and seeing the clear indicators that you need to slow down can be challenging. This is especially difficult when you have a busy schedule and are under pressure from all sides. These warning indicators take the form of physical, behavioral, and mental manifestations.
Self-care has always been practised, but the fundamental necessity of self-care has been exposed to a wider audience with the development of millennial influence. With billions of people having access to the internet, we now have more self-care suggestions and tactics at our fingertips. Here are some of the apparent and not-so-obvious symptoms to watch for when choosing whether or not it’s time to take a break, but first, let’s look at some suggestions on what you can do about it.
Self care is important, not only when you notice you may need it, but all year around. Self care is more than going to bed a little earlier (although that can help), so let’s look at some great ways to treat yourself to some TLC when you need it the most.
Eat wholly nutritious foods
Noone is perfect, and we’re all guilty of reaching for the biscuit cupboard or ordering a takeaway when we’re exhausted. However, as lovely as these foods are, they’re not going to do your body any good.
Your body needs lots of nutrition to function properly, and this extends to the way you feel mentally as well. If you’re not sure where you’re going wrong with your diet, keep a food diary for a few weeks so you can look back over it and see what needs to be changed.
Swapping foods that are high in fat like crisps and chips with vegetable alternatives will give you the nutrition you need without you feeling like you’re missing out. If you feel like you’re hungry all of the time, try drinking a glass of water and waiting ten minutes. You’ll find that most of the time you’re actually thirsty rather than hungry.
If your diet is extremely out of shape, take a look at how you can kickstart a healthy lifestyle to change things for the better. You won’t regret it!
Take pride in your appearance
Being happy in your own skin is important, and more important than many might think. If you’re conscious of how you look, you’re not going to feel confident in yourself, which leads to negative thoughts and ideas.
Taking the time to take care of your skin is a great place to start. If your skin is healthy, you’ll naturally have a glow and therefore feel more confident. If you’re eating well as indicated above, you’ll begin to notice positive changes in your body that make you feel more self confident.
Making an effort to feel good about your hair and make up (if you want to wear any) will also help with your self confidence too. You might be wondering how to soften your hair after dying it, or the best styles for women with shorter hair. There are lots of guides online that can help you feel more confident in your skin.
Keep a journal
Intrusive and negative thoughts aren’t uncommon even in those that are generally very happy people. If you’re feeling negative on a regular basis, taking the time to keep a journal can help for a number of reasons:
- It allows you to reflect on your thoughts and make positive changes
- It helps take a weight off your mind if you’re struggling to sleep or concentrate
- Keeping a journal is a great way to be mindful of the things that are good in your life as well as the things that aren’t going as well as anticipated.
Looking back over your journal from time to time will also help inspire you to make positive changes. You’ll notice patterns in your moods from different situations and this will give you the power to make the right decisions for you.
Now we’ve talked about how you can take care of yourself when you’re feeling low, let’s look at some of the symptoms you might not have realised contribute to these feelings:
You feel mentally and physically exhausted
A lack of energy is one of the most prevalent symptoms that people encounter when they are stressed or depressed. Even if you are getting the recommended amount of sleep, you may find yourself feeling emotionally weary all of the time.
Not only does this have a long-term impact on your work productivity, but it also has an impact on other areas of your life. You are less likely to get out of your house and be productive if your mood is influenced by persistent exhaustion, which can have a multiplier effect on your life and relationships in it.
If you’re feeling mentally drained and exhausted, you should take some time to relax and recuperate. Make sure you’re getting enough sleep, drinking lots of water, and eating well.
You’re easily irritated and feel angry
Do you find yourself becoming angry and irritated by people or things that you shouldn’t be annoyed about?
When you’re anxious, your body goes into a constant fight or flight mode. This makes it easy to lash out at a close friend or family member for making a small error.
These rage outbursts could spiral out of control if you don’t take time to rest and exercise self-care when you’re feeling irritable.
If you notice that your fuse is shorter than usual, it is not fair to you or those around you. Take a self-care day if you start to see these angry behaviours.
When you’re struggling to sleep
Stress leads your body to go into fight or flight mode, and the amygdala in your brain detects danger, which can lead to a hyperarousal mental state. It can be difficult to turn off in this situation. It’s also essential to stay well rested during your busy schedule’s downtime. Do you have a hard time sleeping? If that’s the case, set aside some time to practice self-care.
Concentration levels are low
We’ve all experienced those days when we can not seem to concentrate on anything as simple as remembering why we moved from one room to another. Mental tiredness from non-stop activities from morning to evening is most likely catching up with you. This is the point at which you realize you need to take a break, whether it’s a getaway, a lunch break, or a coffee break at work.
Anxiety takes over
Anxiety is one of the most prevalent mental illnesses worldwide, and the sense of being anxious can interfere with your daily activities.
Feeling out of breath, irritable, or tearful? When anxiety symptoms worsen, it could be because you’re overworked or exhausted, and you need to take a break to go back to your optimal mental condition.
Physical symptoms
Consider taking a self-care day if you’re suddenly feeling under the weather. The concept that a healthy body equals a healthy mind is really accurate.
Mental disease can manifest itself physically in a patient, such as stress and sadness, which can manifest as headaches and aches. If you’re experiencing physical symptoms and can’t figure out what’s causing them, it’s probable that your body wants to rest.
As you can see, even smaller symptoms like aches, pains and insomnia can be a sign that you need a self care day!
