3 Myths About Self Care You Must Stop Believing

Myths about self care are everywhere. You’ve probably unknowingly read or heard a few of them, distorting your view of what a self-care practice should be and making you reluctant to start one.  

So how to distinguish the truth from the myths? And why does it matter? Let’s dive in and explore what you really need to know about self care to feel better informed and start putting yourself first. 

Myth 1: Self Care is Selfish

October 7 2021 was the launch date of my self care packages. It should have been a busy day. I had press releases to send out, a blog post to write, social media posts to prepare and all the jobs I like to get done around the house when my son’s at nursery.

However, I had a migraine that stopped me in my tracks. I knew the only thing I could do was to take a mindful pause. But it was hard for me. It was launch day! I'd told people about this date, but I had commitments. I had goals. 

But I just had to stop. For my own mental and physical wellbeing, I needed time to pause, reset, recharge and allow my body to do what it needed to do to deal with this migraine.

No, it wasn’t an easy decision to make, but it was an essential one. 

So why am I sharing this with you? Because I want to remind you that self-care isn't selfish, it's savvy. Even when we need to do all we do, we must be the human beings we’re meant to be. Sometimes we must ‘be’ rather than ‘do’ and accept that’s ok. Taking time out for self-care, even when we don't think we have time for it, will reap the rewards much later.

Self care, for me, is about giving ourselves what we need to be happy and thrive. Thinking of how our self care benefits others can help us get over feelings of guilt or selfishness. But let’s not forget we all deserve to take care of ourselves in whatever way we need - we all deserve self care simply because we exist.

Myth 2: Self Care Makes You Lazy

 Many people come into meditation, mindfulness and self care with a fear that this new routine will 'soften' them or they’ll become too “woo-woo”. It's a common apprehension among ambitious people who value hard work and achievement. 

As the thinking goes, self care concepts are all about relaxing, being peaceful, living in the moment and accepting things as they are. So what happens if you become too relaxed after a few months to jump out of bed and seize the day?

Well, have no fear - I still jump out of bed ready to seek new opportunities, much to the dismay of my snoozing husband! There is a common misunderstanding about self care, mindfulness, and practices like meditation - but they don’t fundamentally change who you are. If you’re hard-working and ambitious, you’ll continue to be.

What may change over time is the way you work and the relationship with your goals and ambitions. As our mindfulness and self care practice builds, we develop new skills and capacities. So don't fear what self care might take away from you; rejoice in what it brings - concentration, focus, increased productivity and prioritising more effectively. How about being calm and clear-headed too? 

Myth 3: Self Care Takes Up Too Much Time

When it comes to self care and building new habits, it’s easy to think it will take up too much time. You’re already super busy, so how are you supposed to add something else to your list?

But self care isn’t about doing something radical or huge; I’m not talking about a spa day here, although that would be nice!  Incremental progress leads to sustained success, so start small, work out what tiny self-care habits you want to bring into your life and celebrate success as you achieve those habits. 

Perhaps committing to a regular practice is overwhelming, or you think you don't have the time. But it is possible, I promise! The key is to start small! Say you want to start reading more, but it just seems impossible. 

Start by committing to yourself to read a paragraph a day. Maybe you think it's too easy, but the important thing is that it’s manageable. Once you’ve established a habit of a paragraph, then move on to two pages a day etc.

Doing so keeps your habit attainable. Rather than feeling annoyed when you don't commit to reading a chapter, you celebrate achieving your small goal instead, keeping you motivated in your self care practice.

What Will You Try?

So as you can see, self care isn’t selfish. It doesn’t have to be time-consuming either - and it certainly doesn’t make you lazy! On the contrary, it’s good for the mind, body, and soul and allows us to grow, enrich ourselves and be the best version of ourselves to tackle the world.

With that in mind, how are you making time for yourself and your self care this month?

Browse the Self Care Survival Kit shop to find all the tools to help support your self care practice