7 Ways to Take Better Care of Yourself

April 22, 2020

Feeling stressed out? Here are some no-cost, simple ways to forget your worries and refocus from the UH Connor Integrative Health Network.

Breathe

Breathing is the foundation upon which to build sustainable resilience. This tool is with you all the time. Breathing helps you move through the stress, tension, demands, pressure and pace of your days. Each breath is a gift.

Several times a day, take moment to just notice your breath, you can naturally deepen and expand it. No one needs to notice, this is YOUR moment.

You can also introduce a simple modification by counting slowly up to 4 when breathing in and count to 6 as breathing out. Again, this is your practice, modify if not comfortable

Take a Mindfulness Moment

Our brains are constantly scanning, discerning and preparing for danger. At times, we get caught up in assuming and storytelling. Trains of thoughts can hijack our amygdala and our common sense – leaving us exhausted and anxious.

Take a moment to notice what is going on right now, stay with the fact, be an observer. Notice 5 things using your senses (what do you see, hear, feel, smell, taste?). This can stop the train of thought and lead you back to tranquility.

Practice Self-Care

Taking care of yourself is no longer negotiable. It is the responsible choice. It is an imperative. Self-care is the number one way to prevent burnout.

What is the gift that you can give yourself today? Take a couple of breaths? Go to bed 15 minutes earlier? Give yourself a hug? Eat lunch?

Promote Being Positive

We all know that nothing is more contagious than emotions. We have a choice.

Positivity is the intention to seek what is right. Sometimes it includes reframing and shifting your perspective in order to find meaning and grow from challenges.

Take a moment to remember one good thing that happened to you over the last 24 hours. Indulge and remember the details. Even better, share your memory with someone.

Be Grateful

Start the day by writing down three things you are grateful for. Make it a habit for 30 days straight. You will never stop once you experience the benefits.

At work, build a gratitude board on your floor and let everyone participate or have a bowl with sticky notes for everyone to write down what she/he is grateful for, read three notes before each team meeting.

End the week by writing a note to someone to thank them for who they are, what they did and the difference they make. Do not end your day without saying thank you to someone.

Show and express gratitude. Mean it. It feels so good

Be Kind To Yourself

We often treat not only everyone else but our pets and even our car better then ourselves.

Take the challenge to be kind to yourself. Drop the judgments, silence the inner critic, get out of your comfort zone and become your compassionate coach and supportive cheerleader.

To put this in practice, end the day with noticing at least one thing you did well today (i.e. you remembered your friend’s birthday; you showed up on time; you took one thing off your to do list; you added some steps to your exercise program; you received a thank you from a patient or a colleague).

Stopping self-criticism is a hard habit to give up. Try to replace it by celebrating your success.

Create An Affirmation

An affirmation is a short sentence in the present tense that uses the ‘I’ word and sets your internal GPS to your destination. Write it down on your bathroom mirror, on your fridge, as your screen saver; consider sharing it with your teammates, friends or family.