Self-Care Journey Month 12

 

 

I love the start of a new year. Everything is fresh, new. The possibilities are endless. There are plans to be made, trips to be taken, people to be seen. There is, in fact, a blank slate before us.

I began my self-care journey a year ago this month. When I started, I had no idea there would be a pandemic and one incredibly horrendous thing after another happening around the globe. I’m not sure where I’d be right now had I not begun to take time for myself. It was the self-care that got me through some of the most difficult times of last year. They say it takes a 100 days for something to become a habit—good or bad. A hundred days to do something for yourself that will have a lasting imprint on you—and thereby others.

My goal last year was to take care of myself in whatever way that meant. Sometimes it was just taking some quiet time with no electronics or people around. For someone who spends the majority of her time alone while everyone was at work, last year was a drastic change with everyone suddenly at the house. And one that I struggled with. Sometimes self-care meant taking my epsom salt baths each week and doing my favorite face mask. Sometimes it meant trying something new and healthy. But the end goal was me.

I’m a giver. I always have been. I’ll put aside my own wants to make sure I’ve seen to everyone else. I don’t know what clicked last year, but something did. I began to realize that if I didn’t start taking better care of myself, then everything around me was going to come apart. In some ways, it had already began to fray. I think that’s what kicked started me into the entire self-care routine. Now, I make sure that I take whatever time I need (be it binging a favorite show, reading a new book, soaking in a long bath, or just sitting outside and looking at the stars). I make sure I do whatever it is my soul calls for. I’ve learned to listen to what my body needs. By doing that, I’ve started a daily routine of meditation and yoga. I’m also going to start Tai Chi this year. I’ve always wanted to learn it.

Because a new year is a blank slate, it’s the perfect opportunity to let your dreams go. Dream as big as you dare. Don’t hold back. Don’t think small. Think BIG! The bigger, the better. These aren’t goals. These are dreams. Because everything we know, everything we have is because someone dared to dream big. So, instead of giving you a new clean product to try this month, my wish is for you to sit back and dream.

Write your dreams down and tuck them somewhere you can find later. I have mine written in the first page of my planner, next to my goals. I know I can achieve my goals, but the dreams are what I’m striving for. Just like writing a book and publishing that book had once been dreams. At the end of this amazing, bright year, I’m going to look back and see if I reached another dream.

Come along for the ride with me!

xoxox

DG

 

Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.

~ Gloria Steinem