Chicken Soup For The Self-Motivated Soul or, How To Do Self-Care Without Feeling Guilty About It
Today’s post is dedicated to writers specifically, but I hope many of you will find the following useful.
I gotta level with you people: I have a hard time with the idea of “self-care.” In the mind of this type-A, self-motivated, has-to-be-productive-or-I’ve-wasted-my-LIFE gal, self-care often gets associated with weakness and indulgence. It’s hard not to view “me-time” as nothing more than an excuse to do something selfish and pretend it’s OK because it’s serving my mental health.
[image error]Look at this disgraceful display of non-productivity. SICKENING
And then this week happens, where a sudden, weird, and downright inconvenient illness strikes. “Why now?” I wondered. “It couldn’t have happened on a worse week! I’ve got a bazillion things to do and the world is LITERALLY GOING TO STOP TURNING if I don’t do them!”
[image error]I’m a lot of fun at parties
It didn’t take me long to realize I would’ve said the same thing last week. And the week before. And pretty much every week before that.
With burnout lurking just around the corner, I know I need to rest and remember to care for myself. And deep down, I think my main aversion to self-care is guilt. How can I possibly take time to do frivolous and unproductive things when there’s so much to be done?
I know how it is. As a writer, my time is precious. If I’m not writing, I’m not doing what seems to be of the utmost importance. I bet it’s the same for many of you; and not just writers, but also the entrepreneurs, academics, non-profit workers, ministers, telecommuters and more.
We are the intrinsically motivated, and we do a great job of getting WERK DONE. But we also have an obligation to care for ourselves. If you’re staring burnout in the face but still feel guilty for not “doing enough”, here are a few ideas on how you can do that self-care you desperately need AND be productive!
1. Go outside
[image error]This looks nice, doesn’t it? Pretend you’re not thinking of all the bugs she’s sitting on
You aren’t a vampire (I hope). Your body needs to soak in that all-natural vitamin D and be exposed to fresh air. Take a walk, a hike, a bike ride, or something. I don’t know, whatever it is, you do you. And remember that the outdoors makes you happy AND boosts creativity! Look at you, being all productive just by walking out your front door. Internet Five!
2. Exercise
[image error]Never has an image spoken to me on such a spiritual level as this
The idea is the same- exercise boosts productivity and helps counteract all that muscle atrophy you’re likely experiencing from sitting in front of your computer all day! In all seriousness, exercise is important for both physical and mental health. I get it, it’s hard and kind of awful sometimes, but our increasingly sedentary lifestyles are contributing to many of our current health crises. Make it fun- heck, I’m sure there are LARP groups that consider what they do exercise- and make friends doing it! You could even exercise outside. Kill ALL the birds with that one stone! How efficient! Go you!
3. Step away from the screens
[image error]This seems excessive, but I have seen people with 2 TVs set up (one for netflix and one for gaming, obvi) with the laptop and phone open as well
Most of us work on screens. If you’re a writer, you (like me) might do your day job on a screen, write your books (as well as promote them) on a screen, and waste time and relax with a screen. We spend a lot, maybe TOO much, time on screens, and it’s probably affecting our well-being in ways we can’t even begin to understand yet. In this modern age, it’s practically unavoidable, but we can take care of ourselves by shutting our devices down when we don’t need to use them. This is especially important at bedtime- you get better sleep when you haven’t just looked at your phone. It’s hard, but set limits on your screen time. Your body will thank you!
4. Spend time with humans you like
[image error]I usually hang out with my very hip friends at abandoned gas stations
An important aspect of anyone’s self-care is face-to-face interactions with people who you care about and who care about you back. It seems pretty obvious, but there are studies to back up how vital it is to your well-being. Isolation isn’t good for anyone; not even you, writer! Besides, you need fodder for your WIP. Friends and family are great for that 
