“Self-care” is a broad concept. When feeling overwhelmed, thinking of ways to care for yourself does not usually come easily. Breaking down the concept can make the task of self care less daunting. Self-care for mental health can be viewed in many ways, including: physical needs, personal needs, and interpersonal needs.
Physical needs include nutrition, hydration and hygiene. Personal needs refer to feeling worthy. How do you feel worthy you may ask? Reflect on your accomplishments no matter how small you think they are, consider your strengths, do something positive. To meet interpersonal needs, connect with someone, pay someone a compliment, or even just smile at a stranger. Do at least one thing from each category every day to begin, gradually add more as time goes by. Soon, you’ll feel the benefits of the positive relationship between self-care and mental health.