What is SELF Care?

Kenzie
Dec 11, 2024
4 min read

This term is very overused in the wellness industry but it really incorporates so many different things. Taking care of ourselves seems to be something new but in reality we have been learning to do this our whole life. Some of our self care habits may not look alike, however, they are what we know and like to do. Changing our habits can be challenging and sometimes we don’t even know where to start because we are so stuck in our routines.

If you are happy with your self care practices, you might think that you are good and don’t need to improve. If you are not happy with your self care habits, you might be looking to change but not sure how to get started. Regardless of where you are at, there is always an opportunity to grow and learn new skills.

One great tool when checking in on our daily self care habits is the SELF acronym. SELF stands for Sleep, Exercise, Leisure and Food. Using this short simple trick can clearly show our daily self care practices and know where we may be able to show ourselves grace and allow space to grow.

As an example:

Sleep- 8 hours last night + a short nap

Exercise- Walk outside, practice yoga

Leisure- Journaling, color pictures

Food- Fruit, salad, pasta, veggies

This SELF Care check-in is super quick and easy to do at the end of the day or beginning and compare the results. We can sometimes go the whole day on auto pilot and not realize how much we ate that day, how much we are sleeping, go to the gym work and not do anything for ourselves except scroll on social media or watch Netflix.

If you feel like your daily SELF check in is looking the same every day and you want to see change, this is the perfect place to start. Becoming aware of our daily habits is the first step towards a new self care plan.

Self care goals are ever-evolving and can be modified at any time to meet our current needs. When creating our goals, they can often be very general and not as realistic as possible. We should first become aware of our every day habits and understand where we are at in this moment.

Once this awareness and reality is activated, we can then form achievable goals that align with our present state of mind. The best tool to use when writing a new self care plan is the SMART goals acronym. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-Oriented.

For example, check out the way we can improve our intentions and add more information to ensure our success.

Old goal: To become more healthy

This is very vague and does not actually explain how we will achieve the goal with specific details.

New goal: To feel healthy this month I will exercise with weightlifting/cardio regularly 3-5 times a week, practice yoga and meditation daily, fuel my body with real whole foods, sleep for at least 7 hours per night, and balance work/life activities to be present in my family and community.

*Specific: There are actually ways we intend to improve our health through actions and awareness

*Measurable: The habits are measured by the amount of days for exercise, hours of sleep, daily practices and overall goal to achieve.

*Achievable: This goal is achievable because it is based on my current self care practices and holds myself accountable with a real guide for how to be more healthy every day with a schedule. The first goal is just a dream without a plan.

*Realistic: This new goal is more realistic because it makes sense based on my lifestyle, instead of jumping into something that I may not be able to do like go in a long run every morning or run a marathon, both are not likely for me at this time as I am a mom and spend mornings with my family. I am also just not in shape yet to complete a marathon every day, which most people are not doing.

*Time-Oriented: The new goal includes time related specifics such as exercise 3-5 days per week, yoga daily, sleep 7 hours per night and daily awareness to improve these in one month. After this time ends, we can then reassess and see how our progress is going and if we need to change our goals at all.

The SMART goal template is a great way to get started with your 2025 New Year goals and get serious about your future. There is a never a bad time to start, even if you don’t wait until the new year to begin, the time is now. Believe in yourself and know that you can do anything you put your mind and heart towards.

Find the SELF acronym in the GAIA Daily Journal on the PM page to reflect on your day. Try not to get caught up with all the details every day but just be completing and being present each day. At the end of the month you can look back and see where you had your best days and how to continue those habits more.