Self Care Plan

photo credit: psd

What could be more important than taking care of yourself?  Even if you’re taking care of others you still need to take care of yourself to keep going.  But for those of us living with anxiety, taking care of ourselves can present some special challenges and is even more important for a lot of reasons.
A self care plan will help you to remember what to do to start feeling better and remind you of ways to deal with those sticky moments when you’re feeling anxious or panicking.

So why do you need a self care plan?  Well, depending on your situation you may not need one, but there are still ways you can benefit from having it.  The bonus, if you’re in a good place already, is creating a self care plan will be easier and could come in handy later if you happen to need it.  Of course I hope you won’t, but if you’re struggling to take care of yourself right now because of depression or anxiety (or both), as I was last year, then creating a self care plan is not that hard to do and will help you get back on the track to better days.

A self care plan is simply a list of interests that you do now, or used to do, or would like to be doing if you felt better. These could be things such as reading books or magazines, going to the movies, or just chatting on the phone with a friend or family member. I’ll give more examples below from my own self care plan at the bottom of this post. But what I want to convey is that these are interests you already have, or have had in the past. And it doesn’t matter how big or small, important or simple, free or costly they are.

Ok, so if you’re already doing most of the things you want to be doing you can skip this next part if you want. This is for the people who just thought, ‘I have no idea what I used to do, or would be doing if I felt better.’ I know you’re out there. I was in the same boat last year. I feel for you and I want to help. Do this simple thing and it will make a difference. It is working for me.

Write down as many things you can think of that you have ever liked to do or enjoyed doing. It doesn’t matter if you don’t really feel like doing them right now, or don’t think you can. If you’re in a bad place don’t despair, there are still really simple things for you to do. Check my self care plan at the bottom of this post for ideas, and ask friends and family members what things you used to do for interest. That’s what I did. I asked around and some of my family reminded me that I used to draw a lot. I had completely forgotten about that. Asking around was a big help for me and I recommend it to you.

Alright, to make a self care plan all you need is a piece of paper and a pen or pencil. Write down everything you can think of in list form and keep the paper on your fridge, stick it on your mirror, or keep it in your wallet or purse.  Keep it somewhere you can see it every day.  This is now your self care plan.

If you were able to think of things to put in your self care plan and you haven’t been doing some or all of them lately it’s time to start again.  Start slowly and pace yourself.  Don’t over do it.  Make a goal to do at least one thing today, this week, or even this month.  It’s up to you.  If it still seems overwhelming, pick one thing and break it down into smaller pieces.

If you want to start reading books again, but the thought of it seems like it’s too much, break it down.  Start by reading one page, or one paragraph, or one sentence, or even one word.  It doesn’t matter what it is or how small it is – break it down into a smaller piece you can do.  Break it down, break it down, break it down.  The only thing that matters is the effort.

I wanted to start reading again and really struggled to understand what the hell was going on at first. Despite not retaining all the information on the pages I kept at it anyway. It was frustrating, but I stuck with it. Things did improve after a while and I was able to keep up with what I read. But I had to start small. Really small.  Everyone has to start somewhere.  And there is no shame in starting small and working your way up slowly. Praise yourself for even trying, and don’t beat yourself up if you don’t.

Keep in mind that your self care plan is a reminder of what to do to start feeling better and remind you of ways to deal with panic filled moments when you’re feeling anxious and need a distraction or something to do until it passes.  In those moments you’ll get real relief by refocusing that negative energy into something positive.  It isn’t there to remind you of what you used to do and can’t anymore.  You can do it.  When you’re having one of those days where you don’t want to, or think you can’t break it down and do it anyway. And when a panic attack strikes, the items in your self care plan are exactly what you can do to get through it and take your mind off of it.

My Self Care Plan:
Get up at 7:30am every morning.
Take multivitamins every day.
Meditate.
Build model cars or planes.
Practice deep diaphragmatic breathing.
Eat breakfast every day.
Listen to music.
Go for a drive in the car.
Go for a walk.
Go to the gym and walk or ride stationary bike.
Go to drawing class or doodle.
Go for massage.
Go to the coffee pub.
Sit in hot tub.
Call a friend or family member and just chat about any random things.
Watch a movie or go to the movie theater.
Do some housework.
Write.
Read a book or magazine.
Do crosswords or mazes or puzzles.
Go to the mall and just look around.

Hope this helps