I’ve preached the doctrine of self care for a few billion moons and, like everything else, what I teach about is the thing I most want to learn about.
So here I am, moving from the cursory ideal of self care to a deeper understanding of what that truly involves, especially the consequences of not prioritizing MY self care.
But wait! I do prioritize my self care with stuff that nourishes me physically, softens the mental meanies and engages spiritual wellbeing, e.g., body work, light exercise, personal vanities, meditations that include playing my crystal bowls, walking, hiking, listening, dancing.
Then there’s shopping, hugging and petting kitties.
I thought I was covering all the bases.
Until recently.
I’m finding out there is so much more to self-care than what I do to feel good. How I care for myself demands that I understanding the energy of what truly supports how I discover who I came to be!
To know that, I have to acknowledge its polarity—the absence of conscious self-care. Am I willing to know this truth in myself? Whats happens when I don’t recognize that I’ve made ‘you’ and your well-being more important than me? I get angry…and swallow the truth of it.
Or, when I allow outside forces to dictate my time? I feel obligated, stoking embers of resentment.
When I don’t define my boundaries, ‘you’ walk all over me and I feel ashamed. When I feel there is no spaciousness, not enough sleep…and so on.
Lack of conscious self care is the greatest obstacle to my Creative Freedom.
I’m ready to get super focused on being intentional about what I need or expect. If I don’t, some ugly reaction could come out sideways. I can’t afford the let angry words fly or to pick on myself “I should know better.”
I am learning (once again) to check inward. What is my true intention in any decision I make? Am I choosing to use the energy as an opportunity, no matter how casual, to experience myself in a way that is enriching, enhancing, loving me more? Is something really right for me?
How recently have you checked in with you Soul self, that Heart-centered essence of Self and asked what is it you really want? Take a moment and listen. The essence of you will respond.
For the love of All Humankind…