3 Effortless Self-Care Methods That Transformed My Well-Being
Self-care advice usually focuses on a healthy diet, regular exercise and sleep, meditation, ice baths — the list goes on.
I did all these things, but they left me tired and wanting.
They didn’t provide the direction, fulfilment or stress relief I needed.
From experience, prioritising my joy, removing expectations and adopting a growth mindset were the most essential factors in my recovery.
Let me explain.
Prioritise your Joy
When stressed, too tired or lacking time, the things we enjoy are usually the first to be sacrificed.
It’s easy to forget the things we enjoy energise us. They are the reason we enjoy living and how we express ourselves.
They are an essential aspect of our identity, and pursuing that identity gives us a sense of purpose that buffers us against mentally spiralling.
Carving out time for our passions subconsciously communicates to ourselves that we have chosen to prioritise our well-being, which in turn is a huge boost for confidence and self-esteem.
We eat and drink to nourish the body, but doing the things we love nourishes the soul. Food and drink are the means, pursuing our passions is the meaning.
The purpose is to do something simply because you enjoy it, not in the pursuit of making money or some expectation of achievement.
15 minutes is better than nothing at all.
Remove Expectations
The invention of social media now means we are comparing our lives to carefully tailored facades of reality. These create expectations we attach to our lives.
Expectations are ego-based thoughts of what we should be or should have to be accepted.
They’re not what we need to be content.
Impossible expectations mean we are continually setting ourselves up to fail and it accumulates over time into burnout, depression and anxiety.
Removing expectations altogether allows you to breathe again. You can refocus energy on being kind to yourself, so you have more energy for the things that matter to you.
Adopt a Growth Mindset
Adopting a growth mindset means believing your situation isn’t fixed and can improve through consistent effort, learning and adaptation.
If you think you can’t communicate your emotions well, a growth mindset perspective would be that you can’t communicate your emotions well yet.
You can’t speak Spanish. Yet.
You’re not a confident speaker. Yet.
You can’t run a marathon. Yet.
‘Yet’ is a keyword for a growth mindset, and the implication is always that we can achieve anything we continually work towards.
The work we put in is the reward itself. The reward comes not from a desired outcome but through the progress you make.
Failure is reframed as a learning experience to carry forward rather than damning evidence of unworthiness.
Adopting a Growth Mindset means our self-worth is no longer attached to a desired outcome, so the effort becomes less stressful and more playful.
Doing what I love, unburdening myself from expectations and adopting a growth mindset allowed me to shift into a more energised, meaningful and authentic life.
They can for you too.
