In a world where selfishness abounds, it can be difficult to put the focus on yourself for fear of being labeled as that person. You probably know of at least one individual who comes to mind – someone who is so self-absorbed that they can barely see beyond themselves to what others may be feeling or experiencing. Thankfully, putting yourself first doesn’t mean that you must neglect your responsibilities or stomp on others to get where you want to be. In fact, in order to provide appropriate care and support to others, you need to take time every day to heal yourself first.
The Importance of Taking Care of Yourself
“Putting yourself first is not selfish. Quite the opposite. You must put your happiness and health first before you can be of help to anyone else.”
Simon Sinek
It’s only natural to put your own self-care on the back burner as life and those around you pull you in every direction under the sun. Unfortunately, if you keep neglecting yourself, there may come a point in time where you’re no longer able to nurture those you care about because you’ll be too fatigued or stressed, or you may encounter physical health issues that prevent you from truly helping the people you love. Essentially, you could face physical, emotional or spiritual burnout.
Perhaps you’ve been meaning to go to your health care provider for a nagging issue but don’t seem to have the time because of other self-imposed responsibilities. Even if you don’t currently have any issues that you’re aware of, you want to make sure that you don’t develop any through preventative measures.
So what can you do? The answer is heal yourself first. While there are a multitude of ways that you can make changes that benefit your overall well-being, starting small in just a few areas can dramatically improve your quality of life and your ability to continue helping and doing for others.
“Self-care is never a selfish act! It is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer others.”
Parker J. Palmer
3 Ways to Heal Yourself First and Improve Your Health and Well-being
1. Take care of your physical body
A part of living a busy lifestyle and caring for others often means that your diet consists of grab-and-go food that might not be the best for your health. Inflammation can result from this type of diet, which can wreak havoc on all of the systems in your body, including the brain, cardiovascular system, digestive system and even the skin. In fact, excessive long-term inflammation is one of the biggest factors in the development of disease.
Chronic inflammation can begin in the digestive tract based on what you eat. Changing your diet doesn’t have to be a daunting task. You can get a step-by-step solution in the book, Dr. Sebi’s Alkaline and Anti-inflammatory Diet for Beginners. With this small investment, you’ll be able to transform years of damage and heal yourself first naturally with several key features:
- Step by step beginner’s guide
- 30-step transition plan
- Detoxification and cleansing
- Anti-inflammatory recipes
- Medicinal herbs to cure diseases
- And much more..
2. Heal yourself first by taking a few moments to de-stress every day
Research strongly shows a connection between stress and its negative impact on health. Excessive stress leads to inflammation, which slowly destroys every part of the body.
Living with stress may seem like a normal part of life, but it doesn’t have to be. If you’re really determined to care for others and heal yourself first, it’s imperative that you set aside time each day to reduce your stress. In addition to changing your eating habits with the use of Dr. Sebi’s natural diet plan, you should take active measures to de-stress for your mental and spiritual health. Whether you choose prayer, meditation or some other stress-reduction technique, a few minutes each day can keep you centered and better able to care for others.
Here are some ways to de-stress:
- Pray or meditate each morning and evening for at least five minutes. This can get you ready for your day and help you wind down for improved sleep.
- Get some physical activity at least once a day. Exercise is beneficial for a healthy body, and it helps to reduce stress by elevating feel-good hormones in the body.
- Do something you enjoy. Take time out to engage in a favorite hobby.
- Spend time with friends or family. Being around people whose company you enjoy whether in an activity or simply cherishing time is a great way to let loose of everyday worries.
3. Know what you can and can’t do
It might be hard for you to say “no” to others who request your assistance because you fear that they may not like you. The fact is people are going to like or dislike you no matter what you do or don’t do whether you heal yourself first or not. It’s not important what others think of you but only what you think of yourself.
Setting boundaries is important for your mental well-being so that you don’t become overwhelmed or wind up getting into a situation where you don’t like what you’re doing or simply engage in an action because you feel obligated. Additionally, when you take on too much, you’re more likely to experience more stress and neglect your own welfare by reaching for easy meals that don’t give you the right fuel to get through each day.
Decide if saying no would be in your best interest:
- Do you want to do what someone else is asking of you?
- Will taking on the responsibility interfere with other obligations?
- Can this person do the action without your assistance?
- Will helping out deplete resources that you need?
You are a single entity, and you can’t magically fix everything and everyone. However, you have absolute control over one person, and that is you. Heal yourself first to begin your journey to wellness and helping others. Take care of yourself, and everything else will fall into place.
