6 Types of Self Care And Printable Habit Tracker

Knowing how to make yourself happy is one of the first steps in a healthy relationship.  After all, if you don't know what makes you happy then how can you expect someone else to know how to do it?

I'm a firm believer in the idea that good, solid and most importantly happy relationships start with good, solid and happy people.  But loving other people is the easy part.  Loving yourself can be HARD.  It is something that I work on each and everyday.  I have to be very purposeful in my thinking and actions, because for some reason loving myself didn't come naturally to me.  However, I will tell you, this journey of self love has truly changed my life.

At 32, I'm finally beginning to undo the years of negative thoughts, the fears, the doubts and embrace everything that makes me uniquely me.  At 32, I'm beginning to love myself more than I have ever loved myself before.

But knowing where to start on this journey can be challenging.  Self care is a marathon, definitely not a sprint.  Creating small goals will help you discover yourself, gain confidence and fall in love with yourself.

Put the pen to paper!  Write down your goals.  Track them.  Check them off.  And don't give into that inner critic who will give you a million excuses on why you can't do this.  Make yourself a promise that you will follow through for the next 30 days.  (This is where making small goals will come in handy!) You are worth the time.  You are worth the effort.  And by practicing self care, it won't just benefit you, but it will benefit your spouse, your kids, your friends, your co-workers and everyone who comes in contact with you.  You take care of so many people, so promise me, you will give yourself the time to take care of you!

And I got your back!  Here is the printable goal tracker that I use.

Now that you are motivated and have a tracker, all that is left is to have some goals.  (No big deal right?) Did you know that there are 6 different types of self care?  Each month, I like to chose something from each type to work on.  At the end of the month, I evaluate each of the things.  Usually, I like them and continue.  But occasionally, there are things that don't work for me or that I didn't enjoy.  But even so, I always learn something in the process.  And part of self care, is discovering who you are!

Here are the six different types of self care and a few examples of each to get you started.

Emotional Self Care:

• Practice gratitude.  Each day, write down 3 things you are grateful for.  
• Meditate.  If you are new to meditation, try a guided meditation.  There are tons on YouTube that walk you through guiding your breathing and channeling your thoughts.  They can take just a few minutes, but they can be very powerful!  (Want a list of my favorite free guided meditations on YouTube?  Check them out here.) 
• Start a food journal.  I was the first to grab something sweet when I was under stress.  Emotional eating is something that you can be doing and not even realize it!  Start your own food journal, but don't just write down what you eat and how much, but take note of how you feel.  You may pick up on a pattern that helps you! 

Practical Self Care

• Organize your space.  Work a little bit each day to complete the task.  Organized and clean areas help us feel calm and happy.  Does your car need some help?  Or perhaps your office?  Or maybe just your home.  Wherever you want to start, just start!
• Create a budget.  Are you surprised to see this one on here?  You shouldn't be.  Finances can cause all kinds of stress.  Create a budget and track your spending.  Even if you don't make any changes, this alone can help you to feel empowered.  If you need to make a change, choose something small.  
• Get dressed up. As a busy mom, sometimes my look is yoga pants, a t-shirt, and a messy bun.  Sometimes, if we are friends here being completely honest, I don't even shower. (Hello, dry shampoo!) But the truth is, when I take care of myself, I feel better about myself.  Make a goal for yourself, whether that is to do a nightly skincare routine, commit to doing your hair each day, no yoga pants (except to yoga) or even if it is to just make the time to shower each day.  Do something to make you feel beautiful! 

Physical Self Care

• Sleep!  While experts agree, 8 hours is optimal, right now in this stage of your life you may not be able to do that.  But you can strive to get an extra 30 minutes, 1 hour or 2 hours.  
• Take a walk after lunch or after dinner.  
• Drink to nourish.  Switch from soda to water and stay hydrated.  

Mental Self Care

• Read a book.  Pick a goal of reading 20 pages or for a certain amount of time each day.  
• Try a puzzle.  Crosswords, word searches, Sudoku, word puzzles are all great ways to strengthen your mind.  
• Do some research on a topic you are passionate, curious or just simply fascinated about.  Learning something new is exciting and challenging.  

Social Self Care

• Reach out to a friend, old or new and chat, meet for coffee or invite to dinner.  
• Plan a date night for the week.  
• Join a group or a class.  Check out groups at church, the gym, your local library, or even online.  

Spiritual Self Care

• Journal.  A peaks and pits journal is one thing that I attribute helping to turn around my depression, but I'm a huge fan of guided journals.  Find a journal that works for you or simply try out different ones.
• Attend a Bible study.  Bible studies can go over topics or books in the Bible.  Pick one that speaks to you.
• Yoga.  Take up a yoga routine.  There are many online for free for you to check out.  Here is a list of some of my favorite routines.

Have you joined our free Facebook group Loudly Loving Yourself?  Join our group of positive fabulous people!  Not only is the group amazing, but it's so nice to be scrolling through your feed and get inspiration and those little reminders to love yourself.  I hope to see you there! 

Don't forget to pin our 6 Types of Self Care and Printable Habit Tracker! 

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