30 Self-Care Tips: How to Avoid Sickness, Burnout, and Exhaustion

“Remember, you are your own best investment. You can invest in yourself and the quality of your life. Quality of life is a key component in finding joy and maintaining self-confidence.” ~Akiroq Brost

Is it possible to put your health and well-being at risk in order for others. This is a sign that you may be doing more harm than good.

Consider what happens when you board an airplane. What’s the first thing they tell you?

“In case of a loss of cabin pressure, please put your own oxygen mask on first and then assist your children or other passengers.”

They tell you this because if you don’t take care of yourself first, you will pass out and die! You can only help others and save lives after you meet your own needs—not just in an emergency scenario, but also in your everyday life. Self-care is key.

My selfishness used to make it seem like I was selfish in prioritizing my needs over those of others.

To show love to others, I believed that it meant I needed to give my best and prioritize their needs. In the end, I felt constantly tired, exhausted, and drained. All of my self was gone and I didn’t have any more.

My job was stressful in financial finance. I also launched my personal training company, which took me eighty-five hour per week.

To make matters worse, I was working out seven days per week at the gym and only sleeping four to six hours a night. As if this wasn’t enough, I was also trying to balance having a boyfriend, a social life, a family, and a kitten.

I remember it being a regular occurrence at this point in my life to crash on top my bed with my clothes on after a long day. Then, the cycle would repeat itself. Depression eventually set in and everything I did became goal-oriented.

I had forgotten who I was. It’s hard to find happiness. I didn’t see the value in taking time for myself to recharge, get in touch with my inner being, and assess what I really wanted out of life.

I was solely focused on making money and pleasing others, trying to buy the love I didn’t deem myself worthy of on my own. It’s called the disease to please, and it will kill you if you let it.

For two years I maintained this pace with little vacations and few days off, until it was too much to bear.

The sudden shutting down of my immune system caused a flurry of infections and illness. The realization of my goals to be the best at perfection and efficiency slowed me down. I was finally overcome by the desire to please.

Then I was diagnosed with potentially fatal pneumonia. Then, I got a severe staph infection that stretched to the length of a golf-ball in my neck. The next thing I knew, my body was so tired that it became difficult to get out of bed.

The effect lasted several months.

Never had I felt this low in my entire life. I realized that I needed to use these unfortunate events to learn and grow.

It was an enormous kick in my pants, telling me to slow down TIM and take some time for myself!

Finally, I got the message. I realized it was now time to take an honest look at my choices and motivations.

How could I expect to help others when I wasn’t taking care of myself? It was me putting others first. That doesn’t help anyone!

It was the right time to quit sacrificing my self and begin serious self-care.

Get Rid of Extreme Burnout And Exhaustion Now!

If you neglect yourself for an extended period of time you will experience extreme burnout. This is when you push yourself so hard that you literally can’t go on anymore and you just collapse.

Here are signs that you could be at high risk for extreme burnout

  • You feel so tired at the end, you just want to collapse and go to sleep.
  • You feel so tired by the end of the week that you cannot get up in the morning.
  • For the sake of feeling normal, you sleep inordinate amounts on weekends.
  • It doesn’t matter how much you sleep, it is exhausting when you awaken.
  • To wake up every day and to make your life easier, you need caffeine.
  • Sometimes you work too hard to forget about eating.
  • Extreme cravings for junk food are accompanied by a high intake of sugar to fuel your energy.
  • Netflix, and other distractions are a great way to distract yourself from your thoughts.

Self-care can be a great option if you feel at risk for burnout or want to improve your self-care.

How do you define self-care?

At first, I was misinformed about self-care. It meant that I would be happy every day. Then I realized it’s actually impossible to be happy all the time and suffering is a necessary part of life that is required for personal growth.

Self-care is about strengthening and deepening our relationship with ourselves, so that we understand our physical, mental and emotional needs.

Self-care builds your connection with who you are at the core of your being so that when the tides of life get rough, you are anchored and don’t get swept away.

This helps to avoid burnout, exhaustion and allows you not to sweat the little stuff. Self-care will ultimately help you discover and fulfill your purpose in life.

It’s not easy to break bad habits, especially if you’ve spent years putting other people’s needs before your own. Here are some tips on how you can start to treat yo’self!

Self-Care Ideas for Mental Health

  • Allow yourself to relax and do nothing. No cellphones permitted!
  • Meditate
  • A book that emphasizes personal growth is an excellent educational resource.
  • Listen to an educational podcast.
  • Enjoy playing with your pet
  • Be with your partner
  • Smile by doing things that make you happy
  • You can create something artful or an instrument
  • Enjoy the music that you like
  • A gratitude journal is a great way to express gratitude

Tips for emotional health and self-care

  • If you hold grudges towards someone, forgive them
  • Do something that’s scared you that you’ve always wanted to do
  • Instead of looking at others’ goals and needs, focus on your own.
  • Be compassionate for yourself
  • Social media is too addictive!
  • Instead of trying to avoid them, allow yourself to be present and feel the emotions instead.
  • Reading a book you don’t know can help lift your spirits
  • Take a break from technology—unplug
  • Help someone and don’t expect anything in return
  • Use positive affirmations to help you feel better.
  • Note down some things that you are proud of about yourself

Self-Care Ideas for Physical Health

  • Deep breathing is a good practice
  • Listen to the music you like
  • Sleep well
  • Lift Weights
  • Walking
  • Take up a sport
  • Go outside—get some sunlight on your skin
  • You can also benefit from mindful movement practices such as yoga and meditation.
  • Healthy eating (fruits, vegetables, unrefined)
  • Take a look in the mirror, and be kind to your body.

What a daily self-care practice has done for my life

My self-care has saved me so much from being overwhelmed. It wasn’t easy to slow down and find time for myself throughout the day, so instead, I get up early and devote one hour of time to myself.

A daily routine for self-care that I use to start my day on a positive note was created by me. This positivity bleeds over into other aspects of my life, and it’s been life-changing.

It used to make me miserable just getting out of bed in the morning. It’s now a pleasure to get up because there is something I look forward to, such as going to the gym or listening to podcasts. I’ve noticed I’m generally happier and filled with a sense of gratitude for my blessings in life.

In eight weeks I lost 12 pounds, even though I reduced my time in the gym and practiced healthy eating. Previously, I’d put a lot of stress on my body with my lifestyle and excessive working out. I gained weight from this stress, rather than losing it.

Stress reduction, moderation, mindful eating, and moderate exercise are my secrets to weight loss. It also helps that I’ve shifted my mindset; whereas I used to work out just to look hot, I now focus on my health and aging gracefully.

A key part of my self care routine is to incorporate gratitude into my day. By practicing gratitude I’m able to find more moments of joy in my daily life and I’m much more attentive to those I love. Meditation and mindfulness help me to feel less anxious, stressed, and negative.

Self-care has allowed me to be aware of the constant neurotic thought patterns I’ve developed that hold me back and make me feel inadequate or like I don’t measure up. These patterns have become bad habits that I now see clearly.

Just like bad habits, they can also be broken. These bad habits can be broken. It’s been a huge confidence booster.

Mindfulness helped me identify and overcome fear and self-doubt and work up the courage to start following my passion of writing and helping others after years of telling myself I wasn’t good enough.

Here we are!

If you’re like me, and take care only of yourself, you should try the following self-care tips. This is important not only for yourself but also for everyone else you love.

I know it’s hard to find time for self-care; that’s why I recommend scheduling one hour of time every single day just for you. Although self-care may seem frivolous or silly, it saved me my entire life.

It just might work the same way for you.

Timothy James

Timothy is a certified health coach who focuses on mindfulness and simple strategies for weight loss. He’s created a free course to create your own self-care routine and get your mind and body in shape with simple strategies you can use today. Get instant access to your self-care plan and learn how to reduce anxiety and stress.

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Tiny Buddha’s first post, 30 Self-Care Tips: Avoiding Sickness, Burnout and Exhaustion, appeared first on Tiny Buddha.

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