Resiliency and Self-Care

Self-Care

Alright, let’s stop and reflect for a moment….

What does self-care mean to you? What’s the first thing that pops into your head? Write it down if you’d like.

An informal survey/discussion with first year nursing students revealed that many people’s first thoughts revolve around something like exercise – going for a walk with their dog or going to the gym for example. Others indicated taking a bubble bath or reading a book (a novel, not a textbook of course!). Some students stated, “giving myself permission to relax (ignoring the to do list)”, “spending time with loved ones”, and “finding joy in the small things like buying a new candle. I love new candles.” Of course, ‘Netflix and Chill’ was super popular – and that’s ok – in moderation. Binging a series? I get it, but late into the night when you have to be up in the morning might reflect procrastination rather than self-care 😉. Something that came out of these discussions with the nursing students was honestly a little alarming. There were some students that could not identify ANY self-care practices they were engaged in. I’m not talking just one or two students here, either. This revelation was, in fact, the seed that started this book.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the definition of self-care is “the ability of individuals, families and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a health-care provider”.[1]  Self-care is multi-dimensional and engages our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in order to maintain and promote our physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual well-being.[2]

In a nutshell, self-care encompasses anything you do to be kind to yourself by integrating self-awareness and self-compassion into your life. It’s also about recognizing when your reserves are running low and slowing down to restock them rather than running on empty. Everyone is unique and their life has its own distinctive demands. As such, each of us has to decide what self-care means for us and how to apply it in our life.

 

Figure 25.1 I Love Me

Are you kind to yourself? Do you love yourself?

Self-compassion is responding to your own struggles and imperfection the way you would a good friend or loved one…with kindness.

To begin your practice in self-compassion, consider the following questions…start with one that feels easy to reflect on:

  • What is the best thing I can do for myself when I’m sad or stressed out?
  • What is the kindest thing I can do for myself?
  • What would I say to someone I care about who was battling with the same issue I am?
  • How can I reconceptualize a chronic issue in my life without thinking I’m the problem?
  • What is a new habit I can start now to help me feel more joy or peace in my life?
  • What makes my heart sing?
  • If I were to show love for myself, how would I treat myself every day? How can I start doing that today?

To learn more about self-compassion and for exercises to help develop it, visit Self-compassion.org

Two excellent books on the subject are The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion: Freeing Yourself From Destructive Thoughts and Emotions by Dr. Christopher Germer and Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind To Yourself by Dr. Kristin Neff. These books have several exercises to enhance compassion towards self and others.

 

Often when we are under stress, we are limited in our ability to see how it’s affecting us. Instead of waiting for things to change, taking a thoughtful approach is important to become proactive in thinking about what needs to be done, what options we have, and then considering making a plan for change. Reflect on the following questions to assess portions of your self-care practice in meeting the needs to be your ideal self.  If you click on the blue arrow on the bottom after you’re done, it will allow you to download your answers to keep for future reference.

 

The Ideal Self Reflection with fillable fields won’t display if you are reading this in a PDF or ePUB version, so here is the content for your reference:

Ask yourself:

~What does my ideal self want right now?

~What does my ideal self need right now?

~Can you recognize any differences or similarities between the two?

PHYSICAL – How does your physical body feel? Are you nurturing it with exercise, healthy food, and adequate sleep?

EMOTIONAL – How do you care for yourself when you’re in a negative mood? How do you support your positive emotions?

SOCIAL – Who are your most important relationships? How do you nurture those relationships? Are there relationships that you need to take steps to change or set boundaries with?

MENTAL – How do you nurture your mind?

SPIRITUAL – How do you meet your spiritual needs?

 

The Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLPII) is a 52-item measure that views self-care as multifactorial and includes six sub-scales: Nutrition, Physical Activity, Interpersonal Relations, Spiritual Growth, Stress Management, and Health Responsibility.[3][4][5] Using a 4-point Likert-type scale (1 = never to 4 = routinely), questions assess the extent to which participants engage in health-promoting behaviors in each of the six categories. You can access the questionnaire here and the scoring parameters here.

Media Attributions

  1. World Health Organization. (2022). WHO Classification of self-care interventions. Video (webinar).Retrieved from: https://www.who.int/multi-media/details/who-classification-of-self-care-interventions# ↵
  2. Dorociak, K. E., Rupert, P. A., Bryant, F. B., & Zahniser, E. (2017). Development of the Professional Self-Care Scale. Journal of counseling psychology, 64(3), 325–334. https://doi.org/10.1037/cou0000206 ↵
  3. Walker, S. (2023). HPLPII Background and Permission for Use. University of Nebraska Medical Center. Retrieved from: https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/85349/HPLP_II-Background_and_Permission.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y ↵
  4. Walker, S., Sechrist, K., Pender, N. (1995). Lifestyle Profile II. University of Nebraska Medical Center. Retrieved from: https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/85349/HPLP_II-English_Version.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y ↵
  5. Walker, S., Hill-Polerecky, D.M. (1996). HPLPII Abstract and Dimensions. Psychometric evaluation of the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II. University of Nebraska Medical Center. Retrieved from: https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/85349/HPLP_II-Dimensions.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y ↵

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Stress Survival Guide - Reboot Your Resiliency with Self-Care Copyright © 2023 by Jody Vaughan. All Rights Reserved.

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