Welcome to Lesson One, Module Three, why self care is so important. I don't think any program on life balance would be complete without discussing the topic of self care. Self Care is so crucial to life balance that I would say it's impossible to experience balance if you're putting everyone else ahead of yourself. For working parents, this can be an extremely difficult thing to implement into your daily life. This particular lesson may sound a bit like a lecture, and I really don't mean it that way. But I do think it's important to talk about the risks of neglecting yourself care and the benefits of focusing on your self care, just so that we're all on the same page.
Self Care seems like a topic that's off limits for working parents these days. So let's shine a light on it and dig in. First, we're going to talk about the risks you're taking. If you're someone who has a hard time focusing on self care. I know you don't walk around intending to neglect yourself. It just sort of happens when you're so busy, but most people don't really consider the street short and long term damage they're actually doing.
And there's a lot of damage that you can do by neglecting yourself care isn't a fun topic. But I promise you, it doesn't matter how many time management tactics you learn if you don't start becoming comfortable prioritizing your health and well being. On the flip side, we're also going to talk about the amazing benefits you can receive from focusing on your own needs. Life really does become so much easier and better once you start putting yourself first. All of that frustration and stress and exhaustion you've been feeling is not necessary. There really is a better way.
And we're going to talk about what that way is here. I'm also going to help you realize that you're not the only one who's going to benefit from your self care. I know it sounds selfish sometimes to focus on yourself first. And I know that there are probably many of you out there who feel guilty even hearing that from me. But I promise you, the world is going to be so much better off if you're giving from a place of abundance and relaxation, rather than from a depleted and exhausted place. The People are trying so hard to help right now are actually going to be better off, the happier and healthier you are.
I know you probably know it's true, but it's so easy to forget when you're in the middle of that fog of parenthood. So let's be completely honest here. None of us are guaranteed time in this world. All we really have is this day, this moment. And I want you to stop taking that time for granted. And if you don't, if you continue down this path where you're unable to focus on what's right in front of you, I'm afraid you're going to look back on your life someday and realize that you've squandered a wonderful opportunity for an amazing life.
I don't want you to look back on this time in your life with regrets. I want you to live your life to the fullest. I want you to enjoy the moments with your kids and with your spouse and with your friends and your loved ones. I want you to feel calm and joyful and confident as much as possible in your life. And I want you to respect yourself and realize that you're worth prioritizing. But I know that you know it's true.
If you keep burning the candle at both ends, you're going to burn out, you may have already burned out. At some point, if you don't slow down and start focusing on your health and well being, I can guarantee that you're going to experience a whole boatload of negative consequences. And I'm not going to list out all of the different consequences that you could possibly endure here. There's actually a checklist for this lesson, and I'm going to have you go through that actually. But for this lesson, I want to impress upon you how truly necessary it is for you to stop the Crazy Train and start taking care of yourself. You have the power to create a wonderful life for yourself.
And you also have the power to drive yourself into the ground. So which one are you going to choose? Now, having said all that, there are also amazing benefits if you do decide to slow down and focus on what matters most. Again, I won't go into all the different benefits here. There's going to be a checklist for that too. But what I will say is that prioritizing your self care after a lifetime of putting everyone around you first is life changing.
Once you realize how much healthier and happier Natalie Your life is, but everyone else's life around you as well, you're never going to be the same, you're going to stop feeling so guilty for taking a little time for yourself. You're also going to stop beating yourself up when you need some rest or exercise or to get away with some friends. And you'll also stop depriving yourself of those quiet moments where you can truly recharge our bodies. We're never meant to go full speed ahead every hour of the day, it's time to start slowing down and taking care of yourself. So start now just start. So what's next for this lesson?
As I mentioned, I have a couple of different checklists that I'm going to have you go through. The first checklist is a list of all of the most common consequences of avoiding self care. I want you to go through that checklist and check off any consequences that you're feeling right now, or have felt in the past. I want you to be crystal clear about all of the different ways that neglecting your self care is hurting you. I don't want you to judge yourself for any of this. I just want you to start to become more aware of the harm that you're really doing.
When you tell yourself that you can just you know, like power through another day. The second checklist is all about benefits you'll feel when you do take that time to put yourself first, I want you to go through that checklist and check off any of the benefits that you would like to feel in your life. get a real feel for how important your self care is to you and your life right now. Look, I know putting yourself first sounds really selfish to a lot of people. And maybe it does too, too. But at the end of the day, you are helping no one if you aren't taking care of yourself.
It took me a really long time to realize that struggling through my life only meant that I wasn't available to my relationships and my commitments, which is much worse than taking time for myself on a regular basis. When I take care of myself, I'm a much better person, and everyone around me experiences that. So if taking care of yourself is new for you. There are a couple of things I want you to focus on as we continue through this module. First, I want you to do some research. I'll be giving you a very List of consequences that you're unlikely to, or that you're likely to experience if you continue putting yourself last in your life.
But that's just the beginning. Life tends to continue in a downward spiral if you weren't supporting yourself. If you're new to making self care a priority, I want you to really look into the risks and benefits associated with taking care of yourself. I want you to learn what's really at stake here, but also what's really truly possible. Take this lesson to the next level and learn as much as you can about living a truly balanced life. I also want you to begin focusing on the benefits you want to experience, it's very easy to get caught up in the negative consequences of not doing something.
But as humans, it's much easier actually to implement new habits and routines when we move towards something. So don't let me instill too much fear into you in this lesson. Instead, go ahead and focus on the positive things you want to experience in your life and start making healthy choices to move in that direction. One of the pitfalls you want to be aware of in this Lawson is believing that you are the exception to the rule. The last thing I want you to do is go through either of these lists and then think to yourself, Well, this might be true for other people, but not for me. As much as we hate to admit it, we're all human.
Our bodies can only take so much before they start to break down. And please, so please don't blow off any of these risks. And then on the flip side, Don't sell yourself short. Don't let yourself settle for a life of depletion and overwhelm. You're just as worthy of peace and balance as anyone else. So go make it happen.
The other potential pitfall I want you to avoid is failing to see the signs of burnout and exhaustion and not taking steps to make changes early enough. The longer you push your body to the limits, the harder it's going to be to replenish when you really need to. And make no mistake, you will hit a brick wall at some point, start making healthier choices now. It won't take long for you to see results and the more you Institute healthy habits in your life, the more momentum you're going to get and the easier It's gonna be. So just take one tiny step in the right direction. Choose one of the benefits from the checklist that you would like to feel and start doing something to support that desire today.
The first book that I want to recommend for this lesson is Miss diagnosed the adrenal fatigue link by Stephen Zoda. So I've recommended this book actually, because Adrenal Fatigue is pretty rampant in modern day society, just due to due to our hyperactive culture these days. But it's often overlooked as a diagnosis in western medicine, because it presents really differently with different people. So I'm going to tell you a quick personal story. I spent about a year after my son was born, and I was just getting sick all the time. I don't know if it was a flu or an infection or something.
But I was exhausted and impatient and frustrated. I had a fever and I was constantly having to stay home from work. And everything just felt like a burden. And I meant I mean everything. So I spent almost a year trying to figure out what was going on. And then I finally figured out that I had adrenal fatigue and once I Got that diagnosis, everything got better, I was able to finally address the underlying issues that were causing me so much pain.
You may not have adrenal fatigue, this might not be you know your situation. But I think it's helpful for people to be aware that this is even a thing. I was not aware that it was something that was possible. And when I finally got that diagnosis, I realized that that was the source of my burnout, my physical body was actually so depleted that it wasn't allowing me to live my life in a normal way anymore. I had pushed myself too far. So I just wanted to make you aware that that was, you know, something that was out there.
And if that's if any of those symptoms sound familiar to you, check out this book, Miss diagnose the adrenal fatigue link, or any other book on adrenal fatigue and just kind of check into that and see if that's something that might you might be experiencing as well. The other book I want to recommend for this lesson is a book called thrive by Arianna Huffington. And Arianna Huffington talks a lot about how she Literally worked herself into a frenzy. And one day she passed out in her office and she ended up breaking her jaw. So after that, she embarked on this journey to improve her own life balance. And she shared what she learned in and through that process in this book.
And she actually also has a brand new book out on the importance of sleep. And I haven't read that book yet. So I'm not actually recommending it here. But I wanted you to be aware that that is also out there, if you're interested in diving a little deeper in this lesson. So definitely check out thrive if you're interested in a new way of living, even if you're a busy professional. So now it's time to put all of this into action.
Go ahead and download the risks and benefits associated with self care checklist. check off anything that sounds familiar or might apply to you and ask yourself why they might apply. And as always, I will see you in the next lesson.