My self-care routine

“Self-care is doing what you need for yourself to enhance energy, restore health and reduce stress.”

Self-care has been a term used so often these days I figured I’d share what it looks like to me.

Often when one thinks of self-care they might imagine bubble baths with candles and while that’s important, there’s so much more to it. Have you ever done all the classic ‘self-care’ items like taken a hot bath and gone for a massage and still felt awful? Sometimes we need more. Sometimes we need to go deeper and figure out why things aren’t feeling right. Perhaps it might be calling out someone who is hurting us, or asking for help, or putting up a stronger boundary at work.

“Sometimes self-care is also about doing the things we don’t want to do, but know will be good for us in the end.”

I believe that ultimately, self-care goes hand in hand with self-respect. And self-respect involves standing up for yourself like you would a best friend. It involves cheerleading yourself and making sure the people you choose to share your life with also treat you with respect. But in order to know how and what to do, we need to know how we are actually feeling. Which might sound quite basic, but some emotions and feelings have been drilled into us as “negative” or “shameful” as little kids and we have become so far removed from them that we don’t even recognise them anymore.

I’m still tweaking and refining what self-care looks like to me. It’s an exciting and fulfilling journey to discover the best ways to self-soothe and energise myself. As an “ambivert” (having both extroverted and introverted qualities) I need to balance both of these sides equally. Each of them has their specific and unique needs. I’m still learning about what works best for me and I love discovering different things to incorporate in my routine.

I’ve noticed that when I treat my extroverted side with the right mix of ingredients, the introverted side benefits for many days, even months. It’s sort of like a symbiotic relationship.

I have a tendency to go more for treating my introversion because for me it is much easier to manage. I like being by myself most of the time anyway. The extroverted side requires more energy, reliance, and of course the unpredictability and sometimes disappointment of other people. But some extroverted things can be worth the reward because when it’s done right it leads to what I like to call the ‘holy grail self-care.’

Extroverted self-care

My extroverted side loves what most extroverts love:

• Meeting new people
• Dancing
• Live music and easy-going concerts*
• Singing
  Those moments when everyone you’re with knows the lyrics to a song and everyone sings in unity – that is just a slice of heaven!
• Exercising
  Zumba, yoga, hiking, walking
• Dinner parties

*not Coachella-type concerts, where Instagrammers are hitting you in the face with their phones and going to the bathroom involves lines that wind around the size of a football field and you end up losing your friends for 5 hours and start debating going home = opposite of self-care.

Introverted self-care

My introverted side also loves people, but in smaller numbers and in a more intimate way. It also loves:

• Writing
  The ability to unleash my thoughts and getting them out in the open feels like the ultimate relief.
• Creating art 
  Whether it’s painting, collaging or just mindless doodling – having an outlet for expression soothes my spirit and is always rejuvenating.
• Reading memoirs/biographies
  No matter where I am, or what I’m going through, reading another persons life story feels like a simulated conversation that is raw and personal and fulfilling in every way. It allows me to escape into their world and vicariously live their life. It’s just an absolute gift.
• Deep and meaningful discussions
  Talking to people who want to discuss everything from what is the point of life to what is their favorite type of cheese are my kind of people. I just love conversations that are open and free and honest in every way.
• Maintaining strong boundaries
  Easier said that done and something I will probably always be working on. Having boundaries also means knowing myself better and really feeling into every situation of my life. Asking myself: does this feel good to me right now? We all change so much throughout life so it takes a lot of attentiveness and care. It’s so easy to go down the road of someone else’s dream and never stop to question whether it’s our own. Either way, instilling boundaries is super hard. It’s a work in progress for me, especially as a people pleaser!
• Getting a good nights’ sleep
  Sleep has always been important to me. I am usually the type of person who leaves a party early because I want to sleep. I’ve been that way even as a teenager. It’s so important for my entire mood to have a good sleep.
• Being in nature
  Nature is so soothing. I guess because it’s a reflection of us, we are nature and nature is us!
• Going for long walks listening to podcasts
  Long walks and intellectually stimulating podcasts feel like brain candy. I could walk a million miles doing this, it feels amazing.
• Taking baths
  This is the best part of winter and the worst part of summer (is that even possible? Apparently so). I’ve recently started putting a few drops of lavender oil and Epsom salts in my baths too which makes it even more nourishing.
• Reading inspiring quotes
  I just love a good quote! A single quote can literally lift my spirits for months. If you’re also a quotes person I have a bunch of quotes of inspiration here.
• Learning something new 
  Expanding my mind and learning interesting things feels like candy to my mind.
• Meditating
  I struggle so hard to meditate. I really find it unbelievably difficult to not get pulled by the force of my own mind. But I know it’s important so I am trying to do this every morning.
• Cuddling animals
  This is one of the best stress relievers ever!
• Painting and listening to music
  Getting my thoughts into painting is a relaxing and playful way to release my emotions.
• Asking for help 
  This is a hard one but so important. Asking for help can mean asking a friend or my husband for support when going through a rough time, booking an appointment with a therapist, etc.
• Taking a break
  Learning to relax and not having to productive all the time. It’s ok to take it easy every now and then.

The “holy grail” parties explained below satisfies both my extroverted and introverted self because it leaves me fulfilled on every level. It’s like the pot at the end of the rainbow but actually exists.

The holy grail of my self-care:

Going to a party or event where I am immersed in conversations that satisfy my emotional, mental, psychological and spiritual self. Most social gatherings hit the surface for me, they give me my fix of social interaction but there always comes a point where being at home in bed is more appealing. But then there are those parties, or events, where I connect deeply with someone or a group of people, and we can talk about everything and anything, and there’s good music playing and maybe even a few snacks scattered about – that to me is the holy grail. These sorts of things are rare unicorn moments but treasured and thought about for months.

The last time I had this was a few months ago. I went to a dinner party at a friends house in inner-west. Everyone at the party was buzzing with creative energy, all of them had unique jobs and interesting stories. There was a bonfire burning and dinner being cooked, it felt like a big family gathering. I barely knew anyone so I stuck close to my two friends and had amazing discussions about life and everything in between.

Later in the evening, while we were all sitting on the porch, a man dressed as a bee burst into the party. We all stood back to watch as he pretended to ‘pollinate’ the flowers, prancing around in the garden. Everyone stood back laughing. My friend turned to me and said quietly, “he’s a psychologist.”

I got to ask him questions and his ideas and thoughts and views on life were fascinating and insightful. I’ve always wanted to meet a psychologist out of their element, drunk and at a party! There was also a little girl there who told the group that she wanted to read a story she’d written about a post-apocalyptic world. I was stunned that she even know what that word meant. She got the attention of everyone at the party and instructed me and my friend, and I sit on a couch that acted like a podium on stage. The three of us sat squished together and read aloud paragraphs from her story (which would normally give me severe anxiety but somehow didn’t this time). The story was about consciousness and what it meant to be human in the digital era. I was floored that a young girl had all this inside her head already. It really exposed me to the thinking of young people nowadays.

I spent the rest of the time chatting with others and came home that night feeling unbelievably charged.