What is self-care?
The term self-care refers to activities and practices that we can engage in on a regular basis to reduce stress and maintain and enhance our short- and longer-term health and well-being. Self-care is also necessary for you to be effective and successful in honoring your professional and personal commitments.
Self-Care
Physical (Body)
A healthy body maintained by good nutrition, regular exercise, avoiding harmful habits, making informed and responsible decisions about health, and seeking medical assistance when necessary. To remain well, physical wellness requires that you take steps to protect your physical health by eating a well-balanced diet, getting plenty of physical activity and exercise, maintaining proper weight, getting enough sleep, trying to limit exposure to environmental contaminants, and restricting intake of harmful substances including alcohol, drugs, excessive sugar and caffeine.
Intellectual (Mind)
A state in which your mind is engaged in lively interaction with the world around you. Intellectual wellness involves unbridled curiosity and lifelong learning. This dimension of wellness implies that you can apply the things you have learned, that you create opportunities to learn more, and that you engage your mind in lively interaction with the world around you.
Spiritual (Values, Purpose, Intuition, Vitality)
The sense that life is meaningful and has a purpose; the ethics, values and morals that guide us and give meaning and direction to life. Spiritual wellness is a search for meaning and purpose in human existence leading one to strive for a state of harmony with oneself and others while working to balance inner needs with the rest of the world.
Social (Family, Friends, Relationships)
The ability to relate well to others, both within and outside the family unit. Social wellness endows us with the ease and confidence to be outgoing, friendly, and affectionate toward others. Social wellness involves not only a concern for the individual, but also an interest in humanity and the environment as a whole.
Emotional (Feelings)
The ability to understand your own feelings, accept your limitations, achieve emotional stability, and become comfortable with your emotions. Emotional wellness implies the ability to express emotions appropriately, adjust to change, cope with stress in a healthy way, and enjoy life despite its occasional disappointments and frustrations.
Financial (Resources)
Obtaining and maintaining the resources to positively influence one's life and ensure the other forms of wellness. Financial wellness is a 'state' of wealth for individuals or families, irrespective of income levels. It includes your objective state of wealth, your behaviours as they relate to your state of wealth, your subjective perception of your future,
Occupational/Professional (Employment, volunteering)
The ability to contribute to others and find reward in your work that is both stimulating and challenging. Occupational wellness is a reflection on how we occupy our time during the working week. Although financial gain is a factor, we also need to consider the level of satisfaction we get from our job, the challenging nature of the work and a sense of belonging we have to colleagues as well as society.
From SocialWorkManager.org, page 14
A healthy body maintained by good nutrition, regular exercise, avoiding harmful habits, making informed and responsible decisions about health, and seeking medical assistance when necessary. To remain well, physical wellness requires that you take steps to protect your physical health by eating a well-balanced diet, getting plenty of physical activity and exercise, maintaining proper weight, getting enough sleep, trying to limit exposure to environmental contaminants, and restricting intake of harmful substances including alcohol, drugs, excessive sugar and caffeine.
Intellectual (Mind)
A state in which your mind is engaged in lively interaction with the world around you. Intellectual wellness involves unbridled curiosity and lifelong learning. This dimension of wellness implies that you can apply the things you have learned, that you create opportunities to learn more, and that you engage your mind in lively interaction with the world around you.
Spiritual (Values, Purpose, Intuition, Vitality)
The sense that life is meaningful and has a purpose; the ethics, values and morals that guide us and give meaning and direction to life. Spiritual wellness is a search for meaning and purpose in human existence leading one to strive for a state of harmony with oneself and others while working to balance inner needs with the rest of the world.
Social (Family, Friends, Relationships)
The ability to relate well to others, both within and outside the family unit. Social wellness endows us with the ease and confidence to be outgoing, friendly, and affectionate toward others. Social wellness involves not only a concern for the individual, but also an interest in humanity and the environment as a whole.
Emotional (Feelings)
The ability to understand your own feelings, accept your limitations, achieve emotional stability, and become comfortable with your emotions. Emotional wellness implies the ability to express emotions appropriately, adjust to change, cope with stress in a healthy way, and enjoy life despite its occasional disappointments and frustrations.
Financial (Resources)
Obtaining and maintaining the resources to positively influence one's life and ensure the other forms of wellness. Financial wellness is a 'state' of wealth for individuals or families, irrespective of income levels. It includes your objective state of wealth, your behaviours as they relate to your state of wealth, your subjective perception of your future,
Occupational/Professional (Employment, volunteering)
The ability to contribute to others and find reward in your work that is both stimulating and challenging. Occupational wellness is a reflection on how we occupy our time during the working week. Although financial gain is a factor, we also need to consider the level of satisfaction we get from our job, the challenging nature of the work and a sense of belonging we have to colleagues as well as society.
From SocialWorkManager.org, page 14
Worksheets
- The Self-Care Project by Jayne Hardy
- Self-Care Starter Kit | Homewood Health
- Self-Care Inventory | nami.org
- Self-Care Assessment Worksheet | Andrews.edu
- Self-Care Assessment | therapistaide.com
- Strategies for Self-care and Resilience | foh4you.com
- The Big List of Self-Care Activities | kecsac.eku.edu
- Self Care 101: 10 Ways to Take Better Care of You | Psychology Today
- Self-Care Manual for Women by Katie Boyle, Conceived and edited by Mariem Omari | mwrc.org
- The Importance of Self-care | TED Talk Series
- 100 Art Therapy Exercises | Expressive Art
The Story of LeDonna, a woman who transforms JFK Airport Security
A security guard at the airport notices something going wrong on the tarmac, and takes it upon herself to fix it. It’s way harder than she expects. From This American Life.
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