The Ultimate Self Care Guide-The 8 Pillars of Self care.

We all know how much self-care is important for our well being and we all need some me time. But what if self-care starts to become more of a task rather than a pleasure to enjoy.

Self-care on the internet looks like a million different things to do. But self-care is all about how you feel. Self-care can easily be indulged on a day-to-day basis as well.

So, to avoid all the confusion about multiple self-care options, here are 8 pillars of self-care that you can use to try and see which works the best for you.

The 8 pillars of Self Care

• Physical
• Mental
• Emotional
• Environmental
• Financial
• Spiritual
• Social
• Recreational

All these Pillars of self-care will have several activities within them that you can choose to do depending on your mood and the time of the day. There are simple self-care practices that can be done daily and 3-hour self-care practices that can be done weekly. So it all depends upon you and what you like.

How to use the pillars of self-care

1.Physical Selfcare

Physical self-care is just about doing things that makes your body feel good. This helps to nurture your body and help in regulating your energy levels. It also means to care about what you put into your body, your nutrition, hygiene and getting proper sleep. When you practice physical self-care regularly it is going to largely help you in increasing your energy levels thereby helping you to perform better in other areas of your life.

Physical Self-care Ideas

• Eating at set times following a diet that works the best for you.
• Going for a massage
• Taking yourself on a hike/Trek
• Daily movement like Walking or hitting the gym

2.Mental Selfcare

Mental self-care is about doing activities that help to stimulate the mind and improve the brain function. It is also about practicing mindfulness and helps to improve your mindset, growing your skills, reducing stress and enhancing creativity.

Mental Self-care Ideas

• Writing in journal
• Social Media detox
• Meditation
• Brain dump list

3.Emotional Self care

Emotional self-care will help you to cope and manage your feelings better. It will also help you to understand yourself more and deal with any everyday challenges. This will also build self-compassion that is going to help you to connect to your loved ones on an emotional level.

Emotional self-care ideas

• Emotional self-care ideas
• Watching a favorite movie you enjoyed as a kid
• Coloring pages
• Writing down affirmations
• Setting boundaries to protect your time and energy.

4.Environmental Self care

Environmental self-care means taking care of our environment and the spaces we live in.I would feel sluggish and bogged down when my table is messy, when I declutter and clean it I would be in a much better headspace to work. Also, when the environment we live in is clean we will have a sense of belonging to the space.

Environmental self-care ideas

• Decluttering your home
• Practicing minimalism
• Exploring a new space near your town
• Arranging your desk with a new setup

5.Financial Self care

This can look like healing your relationship with money. Most of us would have grown up thinking of money as very scarce entity and that not everyone can have it. But money is an abundant resource in the world, just like the grains of sand or the drops of water. Financial self-care can also make sure that you are not being let down on yourself by spending mindlessly.

Financial self-care ideas

• Tracking your expenses
• Budgeting
• Practice gratitude for what you already have.
• Setting financial goals

6.Spritual Self care

I’m a very spiritual person I meditate every day. This practice connects me with a higher power. Spiritual self-care just means doing things that make your soul feel good. These can be practices that give you a sense of purpose and direction in your life when you are not feeling your best.

Spiritual self-care ideas

• Meditating
• Communicating with the universe, asking for signs
• Volunteering for a cause
• Donating to charity

7.Recreational Self care

This the time for working on our hobbies and creating new experiences that we have always craved when we were a kid. Recreational self-care is important because we can shut down from our daily work and get sometime out for being in the present moment.

Recreational Self-care ideas

• Going on a solo/a group adventure
• Working on a favorite hobby you enjoyed as a child
• Going for a new workshop or a class
• Playing board games

8.Social Self care

Self-care also includes us to be social and enjoy connecting with people. If this might be hard for you at first you can start step by step by going to your friend’s house, going to a beach and many more like that. Seeking out connections and human interactions will help us to know that we are not in this journey of life all alone.

Social Self-care ideas

• Calling your friends and connecting over a video call
• Writing a handwritten letter to someone
• Engaging in outdoor activities with a team
• Going for a team/group lunch

Self-care is all about doing what makes your mind, body and soul feel refreshed. So try to do one at a time and understand which one makes you happy the most. Thank you so much for reading, I appreciate it. Let me know in the comments below which one of the 8 pillars of self-care that you are going to try out today ?