Self-care is the process of taking care of oneself with behaviour that promotes health and the active maintenance of illnesses. Basically, self-care is creating an environment within and around you that protects your mental and physical health.
A self-care routine can be very beneficial to students, as it encourages you to maintain a healthy relationship with yourself where you can then transmit the good feelings to the people around you.
It has been clinically proven that self-care minimizes stress, depression, anger and frustration which leads to a happier and healthy life. For students, this is important as this will allow them to have the best experience and perform to the best of their ability.
An important aspect of self-care is setting boundaries, which some students may find hard especially when it comes to friends and family.
When you set boundaries it is important that you be clear and don't use phrases such as maybe or I'll try to do it , as this creates an unrealistic expectation.
Self-care is about putting yourself first, for self-care to work, you need to let go of the idea that if care for someone you should put them first.
Prioritise free time and learn to say no to things which don't feel right or you don't want to do as self-care is about doing what you think is best for your mental and physical health.
Remember that Self-Care isn't selfish, it is done with the intention of caring for yourself, not with the intention to harm or take from others.
We spoke to Lethabo from SHAWCO about what self-care is and why it is important. We also discussed how to say no to friends and family and the importance of setting boundaries.
