When you are feeling down and need to lift your spirits, what do you usually do?

A Bubble bath, a walk in nature, a cup of tea and a book…

Self-care is noticing your own needs and taking an active role in maintain or restoring wellbeing.

But be careful with the strategy you choose to adopt.

Eating a whole bag of cookies or draining a bottle of wine, – is not good for you and you know it. Neither is sitting in front of the TV for hours or mindlessly scrolling through social media.

Don’t mistake self-indulgence for self-care. How do you know the difference?

By how you feel after it. If you feel energised, joyful and in peace, it’s definitely self-care. But if you end up feeling guilty, ashamed or simply yucky, it was just a desperate attempt to break an undesirable state. 

We all have our moments. It’s not realistic to think that you must feel bubbly and cheery all the time.

There will be days, in which you will feel less than best and that’s ok. Just understand that in those days, you will need a little more love, kindness and compassion. That’s what self-care really means.