Speaker 1: Have everyone.
Speaker 2: Carly Taylor here for this week's Mojo Monday. So when
Speaker 2: you hear the words self care, what comes to mind?
Speaker 2: So maybe you picture retreating into your home, running a bath,
Speaker 2: lighting candles, relaxing, Or maybe it's just switching off your
Speaker 2: phone so no one can reach you, or taking a
Speaker 2: day off work or school just to kind of reset.
Speaker 2: And don't get me wrong, these things are lovely, but
Speaker 2: when you look closely, they all share a bit of
Speaker 2: a theme, and that is around comfort and avoidance. So
Speaker 2: they're about easing discomfort, soothing stress, or escaping the world
Speaker 2: for a little while. And there's nothing wrong with comfort,
Speaker 2: It's part of being human. We love to seek comfort,
Speaker 2: but I think we've started to confuse relief with care.
Speaker 2: So true self care isn't about feeling better in the moment.
Speaker 2: What it's about is functioning better in the long run.
Speaker 2: So think about it this way. Self care is it's
Speaker 2: not a bubble bath. It's more maintenance.
Speaker 1: So you can't drive a car forever without.
Speaker 2: Refueling and servicing it and cleaning it out, and without
Speaker 2: those basics, the car will break down. So us humans
Speaker 2: are exactly the same. We can't expect to feel calm
Speaker 2: and connected or capable if we're not consistently tending to
Speaker 2: our most basic needs. And self care isn't selfish or
Speaker 2: self indulgent, it's actually self respect. It's how we create
Speaker 2: that baseline that allows us to show up well for
Speaker 2: others and face life's inevitable challenges.
Speaker 1: So what does self care look like?
Speaker 2: So it is around the fundamental, So about moving your
Speaker 2: body daily, not just for fitness, but to release stress
Speaker 2: hormones and boost mood, Eating nutritious foods that genuinely fuel you.
Speaker 2: Getting enough sleep. This is huge because your brain literally
Speaker 2: cleans itself while you sleep, staying hydrated, spending time with
Speaker 2: people who lift you up. Connection is just so important,
Speaker 2: Getting sunlight in the morning to help you circadian rhythms,
Speaker 2: doing one thing each day that brings you a sense
Speaker 2: of purpose or joy. So they are the fundamentals, and
Speaker 2: without them the other stuff, all the candles and the
Speaker 2: face masks and the mean time, which are important, as
Speaker 2: I said, but they are really decoration on top of
Speaker 2: the exhaustion. So here's something interesting from the research. Psychologists
Speaker 2: have found that consistent self care predicts resilience when you
Speaker 2: engage in daily habits that support your body and your mind.
Speaker 2: Your stress response becomes more flexible, so you recover faster,
Speaker 2: you think more clearly, you handle challenges with a greater perspective. So,
Speaker 2: in other words, real self care isn't an escape from life.
Speaker 2: It's what equips you to engage with it fully. And
Speaker 2: if we only practice self care when we're burnt out,
Speaker 2: it's like waiting for the fuel light to come on
Speaker 2: before filling the tank. But when we build it into
Speaker 2: our daily routine, it becomes prevention rather than repair. So
Speaker 2: maybe the real question is what do I need to
Speaker 2: do today to take care of the future me. So
Speaker 2: it might not always feel cozy or glamorous. Sometimes self
Speaker 2: care it takes a lot of work. It's getting up
Speaker 2: early to do that exercise if you can't fit it
Speaker 2: in at any other time when all you'd rather do
Speaker 2: is stay in bed. It's meal planning for the week,
Speaker 2: make an effort to cook nutritious food. It's connecting with
Speaker 2: people on a regular basis and making that extra effort
Speaker 2: with those people that are meaningful to you. It's putting
Speaker 2: the phone down and going to sleep and making sure
Speaker 2: you're getting that eight hours. You know, that's the kind
Speaker 2: of self care that builds strength, not just comfort. So
Speaker 2: this week, instead of asking what will make me feel
Speaker 2: better right now, try asking what will make me more
Speaker 2: capable tomorrow? And I think we need to change the
Speaker 2: narrative around self care. So the goal of self care
Speaker 2: isn't to soothe yourself in that moment.
Speaker 1: Self care is ongoing. It's about consistency.
Speaker 2: It's about your daily habits to support yourself.
Speaker 1: So how are you supporting yourself this week?
Speaker 2: What are you doing every single day that is going
Speaker 2: to give you that level of baseline that you are
Speaker 2: going to be as optimal as as you can whatever
Speaker 2: you circumstances, Because that is what self care is.
Speaker 1: Have a great week, everybody. I'll catch you next week.
Speaker 1: See ya.