Take Care of You

How often do you listen to yourself?  How often do you give yourself permission to take care of yourself?

There are no rules or expectations except the ones we put on ourselves.  I challenge you to sit back and think about what you do and why you do it.  Think about each action you take, is it because it is expected or is it because it is best for you?

When my girls were little I thought my house always had to be clean and that I always needed to be doing perfect "mom" things.  I was hard on myself for watching television when the bathrooms were dirty.  I was tired and worn out from chasing little girls and making sure they were fed and well taken care of, yet I still didn't think I was doing enough.  I continued this pattern for the first 16 years of my marriage.  I worked then worked more.  I would get tired, then make myself get up and do the adult responsibilities that were waiting, whether I had the energy to do them or not.

Once I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012 I began listening to myself and paying attention to what my body needed rather than what I thought I should do.  I didn't figure it out right away.  I began figuring it out. Each day I got a little better at it.  I thought I was getting back to my normal self when I got my MS diagnosis.  I had to start over again.  I had to pay attention to the limitations of my body anew.  Two years later, I still work on it.  I still deal with daily decisions that I must make about what I do.  Do I meet the expectations I have made for myself or that I think others have made for me or do I do what I know is best for me and ignore the silent judgement that I feel from those watching?

Daily, I make decisions that are good for me.  I look around at the world and what everyone else is doing.  Then I look at myself and do what is healthiest for me and best for me.  I ignore the unwritten rules.  I ignore the silent expectations.  I do what is healthiest for me.

Slow down and make decisions that are healthy for you rather than what you think others are expecting of you.  It is a process.  It won't happen overnight, but at some point in the day, you did something that you believed was expected.  Next time, do what is best instead.