Why Taking Care of Yourself Is Important
It is easy to forget to take care of yourself. If you pile being a college student, doing class work, and a job on top of that, the importance of taking care of yourself begins to fade. I know this is something that everyone has heard before, but it is crucial, especially now while in college, to care for yourself. This is your framework for life all on your own one day. If you do not start to be available to take care of yourself, body, and mind, it will continue to be an afterthought and can potentially lead you down a detrimental path.
For example, if mental health problems and disorders are not diagnosed or treated, they only worsen. Your mind will become a negative and unwelcoming space for you. The same goes for your body. If you do not eat and drink enough fluids, your body will not be able to function properly or to its full potential. Your diet and fluid intake can also affect your mind. Having said this, you will not feel your best if you do not drink enough water or eat enough food. You only receive one body and one mind to live with for the rest of your life. They are the only two things that will follow you through every part of your life because they are part of your being. Your body is the thing that carries you through life. Your mind is what gets you through the battles of the day. You are harming yourself when you deny or do not give your mind and body nourishment and proper treatment.
Recognizing and correcting unhealthy habits is the most difficult part of changing for the better. To make a habit out of being kinder to yourself, you can do a few things to make the process easier. You could involve friends; for example, if your goal is to drink more water, you can share this goal with a friend, and both try to consume a certain amount of water before meeting up again and keep track of the water intake. Another helpful thing could be to set timers. Timers could work for an eating schedule or even timing in break and rest periods into your homework schedule. Logging your progress and goals in a notebook could also be helpful. Logging lets you track and note your progress on your goals daily.
Please always remember that taking time for yourself and taking care of yourself is in no way selfish. Doing what you love to do is not selfish, and resting is not being lazy. No one knows what you need to function to the best of your capability as you do. Try to listen to your body when sending messages to rest, eat, or drink water. Achievements are more rewarding if you are still mentally and physically well by the end of them. There is no need to push for extremes when you can be consistent while being kind to yourself and reach the same end goal.
