It’s easy to get carried away with daily tasks and creative work. That’s why it’s so important to allocate time for personal care. I’m quite guilty myself of forgetting about rest and food on daily basis. Eventually, my body can’t handle the stress and it spills out in pain or body function disruption. The latest two stress related issues that I had are fainting, and recently, the tooth ache. I had it checked out by multiple doctors, and physically I’m healthy. Yet, I can’t function due to these issues. Then, one doctor told me, that stress can manifest in all kinds of physical signs including hives, fainting, and random pain. I have had all of these in the past, and it’s the body’s last resort in coping with stress. It’s sort of like a notification that I’m pushing it and about to break. So here are several self-care techniques for artists, but I would really recommend this to everyone.
I have tried different techniques to deal with this, but it’s hard to keep to a schedule. I made up a reason to eat more often and on time. For example, as I watch half or whole episode of anime depending on how hungry I am. This way I don’t feel guilty about wasting time on watching an episode, and fill up with energy.
Stop and Stare
Another trick that I remembered today, I used to do in college. There was this very neat and secluded corner at the college’s coffee shop. I used to crawl there with a hot cup of coffee and read a paper book for about half an hour every day. It was such a relaxing and comforting time, that I think of bringing back this into my daily routine. The hardest part of course is to make yourself stick to this routine, especially if it’s for such seemingly useless thing as self-care.
The third, and just as important part of self-care is physical exercise. Stretches and workout help one’s body to function and release chemicals that reduce level of stress. I’m guilty of skipping this too, and once I take a break it’s so difficult to start again. I will write up a separate post on excising and how to stick to your routine the next time. For now, try to think of anything that would bring you comfort and write it down in your self-care technique list!
