Why Is Self Care Important (For All Of Us)

Is your ever-increasing busy life stealing away your self care?

With jobs, studies, families to juggle (and a host of other responsibilities), self care is often pushed away as not being a priority.

I understand – I do it myself too.

It’s just an effortless way to create time for other things.

But pushing self care to the back burner is usually counterproductive. Lack of self care can really affect your ability to remain productive so all the time you save is not spent effectively.

It can be extremely easy to dismiss your own needs if you don’t fully understand the importance of self care, and why you should always find time for yourself.

So Why Is Self Care Important?

Let’s find out by taking a look at 4 important things, that are often called 4 key dimensions, or four categories of self care:

• Emotional health;
• Physical health;
• Mental health;
• Spiritual health.

Why Is Self Care Important For Your Emotional Health?

Self care shouldn’t be viewed as a guilty pleasure or an option that you can easily forgo. It is a detrimental aspect of maintaining your optimal health.

By exercising, eating well, and finding enough time to rest, you’re well on your way to becoming a self care guru.

Yet the real benefits hide in restoration. Self care is essential for managing your hormones. When you are taking care of yourself, your body is able to regulate and balance itself too. This way, your moods, and emotions remain stable.

Also, research shows that self care improves the flora in our gut.

Since the gut has a direct link to the brain, it can further impact your moods and emotions. Flourishing gut flora works on lowering your stress levels and keeping your emotional health in check.

Why Is Self Care Important For Your Physical Health?

Today’s society is plagued with jobs that require extended periods of sitting down.

I am a witness to that myself – being an editor for this website means spending thousands of hours sitting.

When I was younger, I didn’t really care.  Sure, my neck would hurt sometimes but I didn’t understand that the real damage was building up in my spine. Now I’m in my late twenties, and I already have scoliosis – only because I was sitting too much and incorrectly through all those years.

I also ignored the fact that I need to take breaks (dang it!). Now I no longer can sit for a long time because it aggravates my sciatica nerve too.

As you can see, my body was able to withstand the lack of self care until a certain limit or until it couldn’t do that anymore.

I am happy it’s nothing more serious but just imagine how many ways lack of self care can manifest in our bodies! It’s definitely something we want to avoid. If you are feeling the lack of self care manifesting in your body, don’t get sad.

You can always start fresh and work on helping your body rebuild.

Read more: 99 easy ways to improve your health

A simple physical self care routine, where you eat healthily, exercise, and rest enough can help reverse the damage caused by stress. 

Also, exercising helps you sleep better.

You can start working on your physical self care right away!

Grab a self care planner, decide on your health goals for the next month and start improving today.

Why Is Self Care Important For Our Mental Health?

Stress often results in the release of the cortisol hormone.

While it’s actually beneficial (especially in times of difficulty), too much of it is damaging to your health. Too much cortisol, caused by prolonged stress, can lead to depression and anxiety in no time.

Moreover, cortisol inhibits your ability to remember or even concentrate on the tasks.

Read more about this: How to help yourself in difficult situations

Self care helps you manage stress levels adequately and lowers the amount of cortisol in your body. By taking care of yourself and taking time to relax, you can learn to destress yourself and, in turn, help to protect and even improve your mental health.

Related: 30 ways to calm down your mind

Why Is Self Care Important For Your Spiritual Health?

Good spiritual health is just as important.

Sometimes it’s hard to define or understand what it is, but I like to think of it as a sense of having a purpose, or fulfillment. Self care helps you to maintain this spiritual health and it’s not that hard too!

Spiritual self care usually involves easy and enjoyable activities like mindfulness, meditation, journaling, praying, or expressing gratitude.

By journaling, praying, and meditating at the beginning or the end of your day, you can recenter and sort your thoughts + find meaning in anything you do. This way, you are better prepared to face what’s coming next.

Related: How to create a deeply relaxing meditation room

Self Care Is Our Key To Balanced Life

As you can see, a good self care routine is crucial for a strong body and a balanced soul.

But at the end of the day, it’s not really about answering that question of why is self care important. If you take care of yourself, both your body and mind will be healthy and flourishing like a well-watered plant.

Take some time every day to engage in something enjoyable and relaxing.

Your weekends should also involve some self care so you can unwind after a long week and prepare for the next one. If you don’t know where to start, check out these resources that can guide you in the right direction:

A guide to self care basics – learn where to begin

50 self care activities to boost your overall wellbeing

Self Care Planner printable – create personalized self care routines

“Love Yourself” Bundle – printable journaling pack for self care & self discovery

And that’s it!

Ready to make your self care a priority?

Start today by planning an hour completely for yourself, even if it’s just sitting and listening to the music you like.

You deserve it.

Like this overview of self care importance?

Scroll down for more self care tips below!

Amber & The Team

Co-authors at ShineSheets.com

"We love to research problems, examine studies, analyze solutions, and share with you ideas that make life healthier. You can learn about us and our editorial standards here. Have suggestions or feedback to share? Send us a message!."