Put Yourself on Your Priority List

Put Yourself on Your Priority List

If everyone else around you is worthy of care and attention, then so are you. You not only deserve this time, but you need it for your own well-being. Lack of time for ourselves often leads to feeling frustrated, tired, overwhelmed and out of balance. Without this time for ourselves, we lose sight of what's important to us.

People ask, "Doesn't exercise count as 'me' time?" Well the answer is yes and no. If you approach exercise as another responsibility to cross off the list, and/or get more joy when you are done vs. enjoying the actual time spent working out, you are probably getting lots of health benefits, but not the same kind you get from "me" time. Unless you walk away from your routine feeling renewed, refreshed, relaxed and ready to take on the world once again, you may still need another activity that you do just for the pure joy of doing it. If, despite a regular exercise routine, you still feel overwhelmed and yearning for personal time, scheduling a few "me" time activities will do you a world of good!

Let's look at some ways you can make "me" time a reality:

First, decide that you deserve some time to yourself each day. Stop feeling guilty for taking time out for you, and realize in the long run, it's a win-win for everyone. When you are tired, stressed out and pulled in too many directions, it is hard to give your best to all you must accomplish. Remember, self-time is not selfish—it's a necessary dimension of self-care!

Learn to Say No
One of the best strategies to reduce stress is to take on only what you can.  As tempting as it is to join every single club or accept every job and social responsibility, it’s only going to hurt you (and others) in the long run.

Unplug
We’ve heard it time and time again: “Turn off the cellphone,” “Get off social media,” “Time to shut the laptop.” And as much as we would like to give a teenage-roll-of-the-eyes at these phrases, it’s actually very good for you to turn off the electronics every once in a while.

Write Things Down
Have you ever gone to bed and just as your brain slowly starts to doze off…you suddenly start thinking about things you forgot to do? In order to avoid this moment of panic, try to write everything down. It’s easy to think that you’ll remember everything  but It’s much safer to write it all down in a planner or at least some sort of piece of paper.
 
Invest in Yourself
In order to do your best, you need to feel your best. Stress can accumulate fast if you don’t take the time to take care of yourself by giving what your body needs. Sleep is a big one. Exercise, Yoga, walking,  massage (!!)  are great tools for reducing stress.

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