It’s been a few weeks now since you took my 10-day self-care challenge.

How are you feeling? Have these habits stuck? Have you fallen back into old patterns?

If it’s the latter, PLEASE don’t feel defeated. Self-care is a tricky habit—one you’ll likely spend your entire life perfecting. (It’s all too easy to get caught up into the day-to-day minutiae of our lives.)

But regular practice develops that muscle. Eventually, you’ll know in an instant when you need to slow down, say no, take a break, reward yourself, push yourself…

…which is why I’d prefer you “fail” 1,000 times, pick yourself up and try again. Keep finding little ways to fit self-care into your daily life—for the rest of your life.

“But!” I can hear you interrupt…

Does self-care matter that much?

I’m so, so busy right now, can’t I do it later?

Is self-care really for ME?

Those are big questions. Important ones.

And since I’d rather you take bold, unapologetic action in one direction, let’s break it down.

You should run VERY FAR away from any type of self-care if:

#1: You’re looking for yet another self-help shortcut to make up for lost time.

Whether you want to lose those last 10 pounds or find the love of your life, know that everyone wants a magic bullet.

But honestly? The best version of you isn’t with a partner, or without those 10 pounds. The BEST version of yourself is one who knows her worth. Exactly as she is.

So if you’re looking to fix yourself on the surface, self-care isn’t going to get you there.

But if you’re looking to have a more meaningful relationship with yourself, then welcome to the family.

#2: You already have a solid toolkit filled with loving activities that help you feel good.

Maybe you already have a rock-solid meditation practice, weekly dance class, monthly book club and regular community service.

If those feel easy and good, CONGRATULATIONS! Pop the champagne and throw the confetti!

A list of tried-and-true activities you can turn to in times of stress or distress, will keep you operating at your best.

While I still think the 10-day challenge could offer even more ideas…

…you might not need more right now. At this stage in your life, you probably know yourself well enough to focus only on things that work.

#3: You still believe self-care is selfish.

If you read Eat Pray Love and thought, “What a bitch! Leaving her husband like that!” Then you need an attitude adjustment.

Hold on while I get up on my soap box….

>> If you come home from a long day at the office and tell your daughter you need 20 minutes to take a hot bath before helping with her homework, you’re modeling a healthy way to deal with life’s challenges.

>> If you’re intimidated in a meeting, but calmly respond with, “Let me get back to you on that,” you’re modeling confident and calm leadership to everyone in the room.

This isn’t selfishness. It’s self preservation.

Isn’t it better to give others permission to take care of themselves too?

Isn’t it better to help your daughter with math when you’re energetically ready to give her your full attention (instead of snapping at her, sending her to her room and feeling guilty about it for the rest of the week)?  

Self-care isn’t just for you.

Whether you’re a parent, boss, partner or friend, self-care makes you more resilient, and able to “roll with the punches.”

NOW. This all said.

If you can check off even one of the following 6 boxes….. Then you owe it to yourself to give your self-care practice a good ole kick in the pants:

• You know that you’ve let your self-care slip this year, especially in the last few months. This usually happens after a major upheaval, especially grief… Divorce, death, job loss…  (For whatever reason, when we need to take care of ourselves the MOST, that’s when we tend to get so caught up into basic day-to-day survival.)
• You’re not sure where you’re headed. Whether you’re stuck in a dead end job, city or relationship, regular self-care reveals opportunities you might never have considered otherwise. 
• You’ve spent far too long trying to please everyone else. You can’t remember the last time you did something just for you.
• You’ve had some recent health scares. Even if you can’t change the diagnosis, you can take a step back and work on feeling good where and when you can.
• You’re surrounded by toxic relationships. You don’t know how it happened, but one day you looked up and realized you had only one or two people in your life who care about what’s truly best for you.

And of course…

• You’re excited about the endless possibilities available to you if you just took 10 minutes to take care of yourself. No more staying up late and feeling like crap the next day. No more taking calls from that good-for-nothing ex. No more Netflix binge-sessions that leave you more lethargic than when you started. You’re ready to say YES to you. YES to energy. And YES to self-love.
  
  

If you’ve checked off even one of the boxes above, then you’re in the right place. I’m so honored to have you here in my corner.