Because self-care is more than wine and Netflix

But that's not to say that I don’t love a good glass of wine! 

Happy Friday, friends. As we head into the weekend I’ve been reflecting on what self-care means to me. I know from my work as a coach as well as from my own personal experience that self-compassion, gratitude, and mindfulness are the most important forms of self-care. True self-care, not just the marketing we’ve been handed, focuses on nourishing and fortifying your mind, body, and soul. So often self-indulgence is sold to us as self-care. And while self-indulgence definitely provides a temporary escape, it will drop you right back down into the burnout cycle once you’ve finished binging that Netflix show or abandoned your online shopping cart. 

What if we cared for ourselves the way we care for those closest to us? Or even with the attention we pay to our cellphones? Ariana Huffington once shared this very funny but very accurate analogy:

"Why do we rush to charge our precious cellphones so often? We freak out if they are not 50%+ charged. Yet, we don’t do this for ourselves! If we could charge our personal batteries with as much zeal as we do our cell phone…whew. Powerful."

How do you charge your own battery? I hope you take time this weekend to treat yourself with compassion and empathy. Maybe that means processing big emotions through journaling or working on a passion that cultivates joy from within. Maybe even while wearing your favorite facemask in the tub.