Last Updated March 2023 by Crystallace

We often hear the word “self-care” being thrown around all over social media, but what does it actually mean?

Self-care is all about making decisions and practicing activities that improve our overall lifestyle, but what we often fail to realize is that it can come in very different forms. While it’s usually advertised as spa treatments and skincare routines, there’s a whole lot more to it than you may think!

Self-care is all about prioritizing yourself, and by that, we mean every single aspect of your life, including your mental health, your physical wellbeing, and your connections.

In this post, we share some of the most powerful ways to start taking care of yourself – and every aspect of your life for that matter.

Powerful Ways To Take Better Care Of Yourself

1.     Set boundaries

Learning how to set healthy boundaries is extremely important in order to take care of yourself, be it at work, with friends, family, and in romantic relationships.

Setting boundaries can look like anything like refusing to take phone calls after working hours or saying no to outings you simply don’t feel like going to. Only you know what your boundaries are, so take a moment to think about them and start implementing them straight away. Doing so will not only lead to healthier relationships, but it will also reduce a lot of stress that may be coming your way as a result of you always being available.

2.    Declutter your social media

Social media has a way to creep up on us and affect our mindset without us even realizing it.

Now more than ever before, it’s extremely easy to see someone else’s life and believe they actually live inside a dream world. These days, the comparison game is strong, so it’s incredibly important to take care of the content you consume.

If you find yourself having any type of negative feelings after looking at someone else’s content, remove them. This can be anything from influencers you’ve never met who make you feel as though your life isn’t cool enough, to former friends, classmates, or exes.

While unfriending or unfollowing someone may feel rude, remind yourself you have every right to prioritize your mental wellbeing. If for whatever reason you can’t completely remove someone, you can always snooze their updates so you don’t have to see them.

3.    Aim for a good work/life balance

In a world where the hustle is the norm, actually getting to enjoy your free time can cause feelings of guilt and stress.

Leading a healthy lifestyle is simply impossible when it’s all work and no play. You deserve to enjoy your free time and to do things that make you happy. Not only will this result in a happier you, but taking enough time off will also make you more productive at work, so keep that in mind the next time you feel guilty over allowing yourself to get time off (you deserve it!).

4.    Review your support network

Our support network is the people we keep close to us who we trust with our feelings, our emotions, our secrets, and our stories.

The people you surround yourself with can have a huge impact on your mindset and energy, so it’s incredibly important that those closest to you are, well, an actual “support” network.

Ask yourself: Do I feel safe around this person? Does this person support me? Does this person seem genuinely happy when good things happen? Does this person make me feel good about myself or do I rather feel drained after interacting with them?

5.    Work towards your goals

Having goals is such a powerful move. Knowing what you want from life will not only help you get through rough times, but it will also help you stay away from negative situations that could potentially interfere with your hopes and dreams.

Every week, write down your list of goals and do something every day (or at least almost every day) in order to get closer to achieving those goals.

6.   Look after your physical and mental health

Sometimes, putting both our physical and mental health on the backburner can feel extremely easy. After all, we don’t get to see positive or negative changes right away, which can easily make us forget the impact slacking in these areas can have on our lives.

Taking care of our physical health means exercising, eating healthily most of the time (cheating is okay every once in a while!), staying hydrated, and getting checkups whenever they’re due. Looking after our mental health can look like seeing a therapist, journaling, meditating, and asking for help when we need to.

Are you currently doing any of these things in order to take better care of yourself? What’s an area you feel you’re slacking on and want to get better at? Let us know in the comment section below!