If you are serious about self-care, stop believing these myths
What's the story
Self-care is a practice that involves taking care of your physical, mental, and emotional health.
While it is subjective and steadily becoming a lifestyle for many, it is one of the many things that are largely misunderstood.
The reason? Well, self-care has a plethora of misconceptions about it that are long thought.
Let's bust five of the most common ones.
Myth 1
Myth 1: Self-care is all about pampering yourself
This is the most common myth about self-care, which is not entirely true.
While, yes, to a certain extent, self-care involves pampering through a good skincare routine or eating your favorite food, it also involves certain radical steps to amp up your mental health.
These could be setting up boundaries at the workplace, pushing yourself to exercise, or improving the environment around you.
Myth 2
Myth 2: Self-care is a women's-only thing to do
No, self-care is for everyone.
Women do have certain challenges related to their physical, mental, and emotional aspects but men are just as susceptible to them.
Any human on this planet, irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, and age, can practice self-care and benefit from it.
This is why men should also make time for their self-care routines.
Myth 3
Myth 3: Self-care is a selfish indulgence
Many people perceive self-care as being selfish. However, this is completely baseless as the time you invest in yourself has nothing to do with it.
Reserving some 'me-time' from your busy schedule or saying "no" wherever needed is not a selfish indulgence but an act of prioritizing yourself over others.
Doing this makes you more confident, empathetic, grounded, and practical in life.
Myth 4
Myth 4: Self-care is about caring for your mental health
This myth about self-care is half-baked.
Many facets shape you, of which mental health is only one aspect.
As you practice self-care, you also work on other sides of yourself including physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual, social, and practical.
All these needs are mostly intertwined. For instance, when you exercise, your body releases feel-good hormones that jazz up your physical, mental, emotional, and social aspects.
Myth 5
Myth 5: Self-care is anything that makes you feel happy
As aforementioned, self-care is subjective and everyone has a different way of it. However, one simply can't do just "anything" in its name.
Many people turn toward alcohol and drugs, thinking it is self-care as it makes them relaxed or happy. Some also get addicted to their smartphones to find an escape from their negative thoughts.
All this backfires and is not self-care.