How someone takes care of themselves varies from each person depending on their own specific needs. On a fundamental basis, self-care means that you are connecting the body, mind, and spirit as a whole to find personal symmetry. Seeking the right kind of balance in your self-care is important and necessary to find an introspective harmony.
For someone in recovery with a substance abuse disorder, you should put self-care as a high priority. During the time you were abusing drugs and alcohol, taking care of yourself only meant that you were feeding your addiction. Drugs and alcohol tend to skew any healthy aspects of life which means that you just did not really care to sleep, eat, or take care of care of yourself. Hygiene, diet, sleep, physical activity, spirituality, and your emotionality probably all take the backseat in order to maintain your high.
As you start to take care of your recovery, integrating self-care as part of your recovery is an important concept to grasp. Learning how to take care of your basic needs along with making sure your mental health needs are being met will make all the difference in the world for long-term sobriety and here are nine reasons why.
Helps decrease your stress level
Whatever your self-care entails, you will inevitably relieve some tension. Doing something that is intended to make you feel taken care of, will give you some simple and much-needed comfort. Positive benefits will ensue by activating a relaxing response from the self-care you self-impose.
Allows you to caretake for others
The first rule of self-care is to take care of self as a top priority. You cannot take care of anybody else if you do not take care of yourself first. You cannot transmit something you do not have and that includes imposing care for your well-being. You deserve to be taken care of and you should start to believe that stat.
Gives you time to yourself
Being alone with your self-care does not necessarily mean that you are isolating as you did with your booze and your drugs. This is quite the opposite because time with yourself, to do something nice for yourself will result in building up your self-confidence.
Assists with improving your physical health
Exercise is an important element to implement into your self-care for your overall health. You should pick a physical activity that works for you. Yoga, running, snow sports, jump roping, or anything that helps you gain serenity along with the physical attributes will be helpful for your overall psyche.
Improves your self-esteem
Anything you do to boost self-love through self-care will no doubt improve your self-esteem. You probably have spent tons of time loathing yourself with the choices that you made in your addiction and now is the time to move on from the negativity. Loving yourself and honoring yourself does not make you selfish or narcissistic. Loving yourself is just the opposite because you are expressing the strength that you are worth loving.
Soothes your soul
Communicating your needs and nourishing your body are certainly imperative aspects of your self-care, but so is taking care of your spirituality. Doing things that soothe your soul can range from meditating to taking a walk in nature. Anything you find to give you a deeper connection to your Higher Power will be beneficial to your soul so keep practicing.
Entitles you to pamper yourself
You may feel like you have done too many things in your past to deserve to do anything good for yourself. Take that negative philosophy and be rid of it. There is nothing that you merit more than to pamper yourself. You are not excluded from catering to your self-care just because you did some questionable things when you were drinking and using. Stay in the now and take care of yourself at this very moment.
Shows that you are trying to love who you are
When you start your self-care, you may feel a little weird with these labors of love to yourself. In fact, they may feel downright foreign. This personal pursuit says a lot about you and where you are at in your recovery. You must love to be loved which totally relates to how you are striving to love yourself.
Self-care just feels good!
Overall nothing feels better to take the edge than caring for yourself. Whether you are meal prepping healthy foods for the week or getting a massage, find the things that you know make you feel good and consistently do them.
Implement some self-care and you will be glad that you did. Now is the time to live your best life and it all starts with how you treat yourself.
Offering a full range of recovery and mental health services, Detox Center of Colorado offers “Expanded Recovery” to enrich our clients’ lives in mind, body, and spirit. Through evidence-based therapy options and the endless adventure of Colorado, Detox Center of Colorado fosters connection, encouraging clients to get connected to themselves, their peers, their families, and their higher power. With the power of recovery, clients are restored to full health and experience life-changing healing. Call us today for more information: 303-536-5463
