It’s important that you try to take some time for yourself and look after your needs. Tips for self-care include:
- A regular sleep routine and 7-8 hours of sleep per day. A sleep routine may include: reducing caffeine (especially after 3pm), no blue screens (mobile phones and TV) half an hour before sleeping, using sleep encouraging activities like reading, colouring, listening to the radio instead.
- Having a balanced diet and regularly drinking water: reducing salts, processed food and sugars. Increasing fresh food and vegetables.
- Staying active: walking, running, swimming and yoga, at an appropriate level for your stage of recovery. If in doubt take an 'everything in moderation, nothing to excess' approach.
- Enjoying outside spaces.
- Mindfulness: trying to ‘live in the moment,’ ‘moving from ‘doing’ to ‘being,’ instead of worrying about what the future might hold or what has happened in the past. For example: just taking a moment to mindfully drink a cup of tea, really noticing all the senses involved or taking a shower mindfully.
- Meditation – just noticing thoughts and feeling without judgement often focusing on your breathing or different parts of the body (try the free Headspace app)
- Spending time with friends and family.
- Try new creative hobbies or things that you used to enjoy; painting or singing in a choir.
FAQs
It’s important that you try to take some time for yourself and look after your needs. Tips for self-care include:
- A regular sleep routine and 7-8 hours of sleep per day. A sleep routine may include: reducing caffeine (especially after 3pm), no blue screens (mobile phones and TV) half an hour before sleeping, using sleep encouraging activities like reading, colouring, listening to the radio instead.
- Having a balanced diet and regularly drinking water: reducing salts, processed food and sugars. Increasing fresh food and vegetables.
- Staying active: walking, running, swimming and yoga, at an appropriate level for your stage of recovery. If in doubt take an 'everything in moderation, nothing to excess' approach.
- Enjoying outside spaces.
- Mindfulness: trying to ‘live in the moment,’ ‘moving from ‘doing’ to ‘being,’ instead of worrying about what the future might hold or what has happened in the past. For example: just taking a moment to mindfully drink a cup of tea, really noticing all the senses involved or taking a shower mindfully.
- Meditation – just noticing thoughts and feeling without judgement often focusing on your breathing or different parts of the body (try the free Headspace app)
- Spending time with friends and family.
- Try new creative hobbies or things that you used to enjoy; painting or singing in a choir.