Prioritizing Well-being and Self-Care: Why Should You Care?

Prioritizing well-being is not just a luxury, but a necessity in today's fast-paced world. It is a conscious decision to nurture your mind, body, and soul, and it enables you to create a harmonious balance of your entire self.

When you prioritize your well-being, you are not only enhancing your own life but you are also positively impacting the lives of those around you. This is because your enhanced mental, emotional, and physical functioning will enable you to be more vital, present, engaged, and to approach challenges with resilience and grace.

One of the most important aspects of well-being is maintaining strong social connections with friends and loved ones. This is because a supportive network greatly contribute to your overall happiness. Other effective ways to improve your well-being are related to self-care. Self-care involves physical activities such as practicing mindfulness and deep breathing, getting regular exercise, dedicating enough time for sleep and rest, and eating a balanced diet.

Self-care also includes engaging in hobbies and activities that bring you joy, meaning, and fulfillment. In addition to your hobbies, reflecting on your strengths, your values, and your passions, and cultivating positive emotions by practicing gratitude, self-compassion, hope, and awe, are essential for developing a positive outlook of yourself and of your life.

Your well-being and self-care also involve creating opportunities for accomplishments and remembering to celebrate your accomplishments. In addition, you want to ensure that you experience a sense of 'flow' during work, as well as during leisure time. The state of flow is a state of full engagement during which your level of skill matches your level of effort and you feel as if 'you are one with the music.'

Remember, taking care of yourself is essential for leading a happy and healthy life. Practicing self-care is not selfish; it is a vital practice that allows you to show up as the best version of yourself and to be a better mother, colleague, neighbor, daughter, partner, and friend. Higher levels of well-being is beneficial for yourself, as well as for the world around you.

By making your well-being a priority, you are choosing to invest in a future filled with vitality, joy, contentment, meaning, and purpose. 

See my other posts of how to practice gratitude, hope, curiosity, and self compassion.

This article is based on:

Seligman, M. (2018). PERMA and the building blocks of well-being. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 13(4), 333–335. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2018.1437466

Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. (1990). Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience.