As women, we are taught at an early age that we are the caretakers and nurturers of others.  And that is a beautiful job, one that I take seriously and feel honored to do.  But to keep pouring out into and for others, we have to remember to refill our own cup.  If you have ever traveled on an airplane, the following sentence should be a familiar one; “In case of emergency, air masks will drop from the ceiling.  If you are traveling with a minor, please put on your own mask before helping the minor”; but how many times do we really follow these directions in our daily lives?  When life gets hectic, your to-do list is never ending, your calendar is jam-packed, and you feel like you are pleasing no one, who is the first person to get pushed to the back burner?  If you are anything like me, that person is the one that actually needs the most self-love and grace, that person is yourself. While self-care may seem indulgent and a luxury we can not afford, it is actually crucial to your physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well-being. And honestly it doesn’t have to cost anything.  However, one very important thing to remember about self care is that it is a practice, it isn’t something you just do once.  By making it a part of your routine you are sending a message to yourself and others; that message is “I am worth it.  I believe in myself enough to make myself a priority.”  The benefits of self care are amazing:

• Reduce the negative affects of stress
• Your relationships will flourish
• You begin to appreciate and notice the small things
• Your physical health will improve
• Your emotional health will improve
• Your spiritual health will improve (do you see a pattern here?

This is just a very small sampling of the benefits.  If you begin to practice self care I can guarantee you will add more to this list each time you take the time to make yourself a priority.  In the coming days I will be giving you some suggestions of how to make self care  part of your routine and not just something you dream about doing someday….I think you will be surprised at how little time and money it will take…and remember YOU ARE WORTH IT!!!!