5 Tips For Self-Care Routines on Your IBD Journey During Social Isolation
(please note that this post is sponsored by IBD Healthline, but all information is original and my own)
I have partnered with IBD Healthline on their Self-Care Series to empower everyone in the community to take their time to refocus and fill themselves with love and strength during this challenging time!
I used to think I “hated self-care” … I know – crazy right!? But it’s partially because I thought I was “bad at it.” I got antsy watching movies, I got impatient painting my nails, and I just didn’t really love face masks. And all of those things were what I thought to be the picture of “self-care.” But when I let go of the traditional label of self-care, I realized WAIT I LOVE SELF-CARE!!
I think self-care has become so trendy that it can be difficult to remember that it really is simple. Here’s how I view self-care:
Self-care is putting self-love into action.
Self-care is doing things that make you feel joyful, rejuvenated and recharged.
Self-care is doing things that make you feel CARED for – mentally, physically and/or emotionally
So maybe, for you, it IS painting your nails or doing a facemask. Maybe it’s going on a run, making it’s getting a message, maybe it’s going to yoga, maybe it’s reading, maybe it’s taking a bubble bath, maybe it’s going on a walk, maybe it’s wandering around a bookstore, maybe it’s baking, maybe it’s coloring, maybe it’s meditating… self-care is SO individualized.
You can’t do it “wrong.” You can’t be “good” or “bad” at it. You can’t “mess it up.” Well… the only way to ~mess it up~ is by not doing it. ;)
I have IBD coaching clients tell me constantly that they just don’t know HOW to get into self-care because they’re so programmed to go-go-go which is understandable in today’s society. We’re told to work harder, do more, be productive. But sometimes the most productive thing you can do for yourself is to put the work away and channel your energy into yourself. HECK, most of the time self-care is the most productive thing you can do because the more you fill your own cup back up, you can give more to others, do better work, be a better friend, put more light into the world, while still feeling filled up yourself.
So, let’s commit to rebelling against our constant go-go-go society and instead commit to loving ourselves harder through self-care. For many of us, go-go-going and neglecting self-care is simply a bad habit and a pattern that we continually reinforce. It takes sitting in the discomfort of doing something we aren’t used to in order to break that habit. For me that meant trying a bunch of different activities, hobbies and simple activities until I found my self-care groove.
Now? Now self-care is my absolute favorite. I live for morning reading time and gratitude journaling, walking breaks during my workday, and meditation before bed. Nothing makes me happier than dancing around to my favorite music, sipping a cozy homemade dairy free chai latte and eating vegan ice cream while watching the bachelor. I’ve actually even started to love the occasional face mask and getting my nails done (before self-isolation).
Once I started incorporating self-care into my life, I noticed a huge difference in my IBD journey. No, yoga and walks and meditating and face masks and tea and the bachelor didn’t cure my ulcerative colitis (crazy right?!), but they did remind me to slow down which helped lower my stress (helping my symptoms) and reminded me to check in with myself multiple times a day, asking myself, “How am I truly feeling? How does my body feel? What do I REALLY need right now?”
Self-care gave me space to breathe and get in touch with what my body needed to thrive with chronic illness. It gave me the downtime I needed to recoup and relax which, in turn, helped my body. It reminded me to give my body and mind love while it dealt with something difficult.
So, ALL of you, whether you have IBD or not, should be focusing extra hard on self-care right now. We’re all going through something extremely difficult which places extra stress on our bodies and minds, and it’s important to give ourselves room to breathe, feel our emotions, and lift ourselves up.
Here are some tips for incorporating self-care into your daily life:
Schedule it in: If you have a hard time remembering to prioritize yourself, put it on your calendar! I schedule in my morning journal + reading time and walk/workout. I also schedule in short walks throughout the day and leave space scheduled in in the evening for self-care as well.
Leave blank space: Something I’ve been pushing myself to do is leave blank spaces in my calendar (especially because many of you may have more freedom in your schedules right now) that are for self-care but that allow you to decide in that moment want sounds fun and rejuvenating. I’m someone who loves having a solid 100% planned-out week, even down to my self-care activities. Leaving blank space that’s for self-care but doesn’t assign a specific form of self-care allows me to be even more in touch with my body and mind.
Try it all: If you don’t know what types of self-care, have fun with it! Trying drawing or painting, try guided meditation, order a fun face mask or a new journal, jump into moonology or crystals, dance around your kitchen, bake… literally whatever sounds like it may be a fun way to give back to yourself and feel filled back up!
Find what YOU love: With everyone sharing their self-care on social media it’s easy to fall into the comparison trap. I used to see everyone doing big, elaborate self-care nights with bubble baths and fancy products and think my self-care was silly compared to it because I was content with tea and a good book. But you do YOU!
It’s also okay to do “nothing”: I used to fall into the trap of still wanting my self-care to be “productive” (reading personal development books or doing a DIY project for my apartment, for example), but the more I did self-care just for the sake of it, the better I felt. So, watch TV if that feels good to you, color if it makes your mind feel at ease, learn TikTok dances that no one will ever see you do. Self-care is productive in and of itself because it’s filling your cup back up.
And the best part about self-care is it doesn’t have to be expensive (most of my favorite self-care practices are totally free) or time-consuming. But I will say that it should be a DAILY thing.
I’m a firm believer that we should all live lives built on a basis of self-care. Because that means we’re living a life built on a basis of self-love because self-care is truly just self-love manifested in a physical, tangible way. Living a life based in self-care means you check in with yourself, you take breaks when you’re burnt out, you create positive habits and routines in your life, and you make sure to do small things each day that lift you up.
If you need more support in your self-care and IBD journey right now, join me on the following days on the IBD Healthline App to dive into some topics surrounding self-care:
Wednesday, 4/22 at 5:30pm PST: Mindfulness tips during social isolation
Tuesday, 4/28 at 5:30pm PST: Morning and nightly routine ideas during social isolation
Thursday, 4/30. at 5:30pm PST: Lessons learned from quarantine and IBD