The key to self-care is balance and prioritizing activities that promote a sense of physical, mental and emotional well-being and reduce stress.
When was the last time you put your appearance and personal care needs at the top of the list? For many caregivers, self-care is often viewed as a luxury rather than a priority.
Most of us are familiar with the concept of self-care, but how many of us feel that we can actually making time for it? And, how many of us realize that self-care can be as much about doing things to help your physical and mental health as it is about not doing certain things. It might also mean not overloading your schedule, so you have the time and energy to take care of yourself!
According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, “Regular, quality self-care has been shown to improve mental health, enhance self-esteem and self-worth, increase optimism, and lessen symptoms of anxiety and depression. It can also help build resilience so you’re better able to handle life’s many stressors and challenges. Self-care touches all aspects of our lives and helps us show up as the best versions of ourselves. It’s putting our oxygen mask on before we can help others with theirs’.
Start today to improve your self-care by being mindful of your appearance and your mood. They are yours to control and improve.
Find ways to spiff up your appearance and be proud of who you see in the mirror can, believe it or not, influence your mood, your happiness and even how your day goes. Choose to look great and be happy.
You are important! It is more than okay to want to take care of yourself. Choosing to look good and be happy doesn’t take much once you decide to set on a path to spruce-up your appearance. It may just give you the boost you need to stand strong and create a more confident approach to the tasks at hand.
Let’s meet two families: the Elliots and the Singh sisters as they continue their journey.
Meet the Elliots
The Elliots are having a huge family wedding next summer. The bride and groom want the grandparents and older aunts and uncles to attend but they’re worried about what they’re going to wear, grooming etc. Most have family members who can help but several are on their own and might need a bit of help. Let’s see what made it onto the list during family discussions:
You are what you eat. This old saying is so true. Your appearance is directly related to what you eat and drink. Decreasing fatty foods and carb intake, plus limiting alcohol, improves your skin, takes weight off, and even helps with clearer thinking.
Time to get moving. Try to build regular exercise into your weekly routines. Whether walking, swimming or doing yoga, being physically active will improve your muscle tone, energy levels, balance, posture, sleep habits and confidence. All these things improve your appearance too.
Needing tooth fixes. Daily brushing and flossing, coupled with regular cleanings and checkups helps keep a winning smile. With the weddings so far ahead, there’s time to fix broken dentures and missing teeth and even do some tooth whitening.
Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Drinking water helps elders and all of us stay hydrated and mobile. The more water consumed the better skin will look. Ask a doctor how much water to drink daily to help fight dehydration and keep your skin healthy.
Stand and sit up straight. Practicing good posture not only improves looks but digestion and blood flow as well. It also decreases neck and back pain. Good posture builds confidence and changes first impressions. Ask a physio for stretching exercises.
Ban body odour. Often those who live alone forget or don’t feel the need to change or bathe. Encourage regular showers and daily clean clothes, along with deodorants, small amounts of perfume or cologne. This will encourage conversation and easier mixing.
Wash, cut and style. Find a new easy to maintain hair style and work with an affordable barber or hairdresser to schedule regular haircuts. Avoid show through roots and moisturize to prevent dandruff and itchy scalp.
Nails, brows and fuzz. Shaving, trimming beards and removing extra facial, ear, nose, armpit or leg hair can give skin a clean, softer, smoother, more youthful look. Keep finger and toe nails clean and at a good length and opt for mani-pedis.
Donate older clothes. Purge and donate clothes that are dated, worn out or poorly fitting. There’s nothing like the confidence that’s felt when a fresh new outfit to make heads turn, or the pride when someone says “WOW, you look great”.
Seeing is believing. Update prescriptions to ensure safety and best fit. Aside from helping you see well, glasses are a fashion statements that gives the opportunity to showcase personal style and energy with tasteful colour and frame designs.
If the shoe fits. The condition of your shoes tells the world how well you are doing. Keep feet moisturized, socks fresh and shoes clean, repaired or replaced. Invest in the safest, well-fitting footwear that you can afford.
Undergarments matter. Many off us forget to replace underpants or bras and vests to ensure they are fresh looking, comfortable and supportive. Remember to buy new well- fitting sizes when things become worn, too loose or too tight.
Accessories that please. Practice adding a new scarf, necklace or purse can update a outfit. Accessories can be for pure fun, or add glamour, colour or sophistication. Remember “when less is more” is a sure way to way accessories successfully.
Make-up and lips. Keep your lips moist by using lip balms and moisturizers. Toss old make-up containers. Book a demo with recommendations from a specialist to find new tones, colours and brands to improve your look.
Class up jackets. Take the time to find a posh jacket that looks stylish – even if its second hand. Scruffy, buttons missing coats with big out lapels aren’t impressive. Rain or shine it’ll help boost confidence.
Meet the Singh sisters
Harsha and her two sisters have found themselves in need of some uplifting ideas in the midst of their caring challenges. Let’s see what ideas Harsha found to give them all bit of a boost:
Thankful. They each wrote a list of big and small ways to appreciate each other and the things they can still enjoy together.
Memory lane. Together with their parents they flipped through some old photo albums and pictures on their phones in search of happy memories. Seeing family and friends doing funny things and revisiting vacations or family occasions brought back fond memories and improve your mood. They each picked one great pic to frame and display.
Great friends. Every second Wednesday evening they agreed to get together at the house and invite a neighbour or family friend to join them for dessert or wine and cheese. It brightened up their mid-week evenings and put them in touch with their favourite people who are healthy, kind, loving and supportive.
Health watch. Each of them agreed to keep a log of what they were eating and how their parents were fairing at meal time. They also invited a yoga instructor to come over and do a yoga class for them and their parents once every few weeks.
Music matters. They realized that playing different types of music for each other and their parents at different times of the day helped with balancing moods and energy levels while reducing tension and bringing a little playfulness into difficult tasks. They even noticed mum singing along to some of the oldies.
Let there be light. Harsha realized they needed to bring more sunshine into their life based on her reading some health tips. Apparently sunshine increases serotonin levels and which create better moods, focus and calm. Whether that meant opening the living room or bedroom curtains fully or finding time to sit quietly in the sunroom, she discovered that seeing and feeling the sunshine actually made them smile.
Good-bye negative news. All of their attitudes seemed to be influenced by negative news as were their conversations. The sisters decided to limit exposure and stopped watching the evening news in favour of lighter movies and game shows. Harsha’s sister also came up with a phones-down policy at meal and personal care times to promote happier thoughts and conversations.
Puzzle time. Mum came up with the idea of doing a family puzzle or playing a board game or cards. It broke up the daily routine, got everyone around the table together, built old skills. And best of all, permission to have a bit of fun.
Order in. Once a week, whoever was on duty opted to order in a meal. It took away the work of prepping and clean up and allowed them to add some variety at meal time. They even tried some new tasty options from different places.
Giving back. There is wonderful feeling when you volunteer for a cause that you believe in or just do a good deed for someone. Giving back had always been something that they did as a family. With a church rummage sale coming up they decided to clear out some of the spare rooms and make a sizable donation to the event. Everyone felt good knowing they’d used their time and no-longer-needed possessions to help others.
Professional help. Dad wasn’t as easy to “please’ as the rest of them so they decided to ask for help from an occupational therapist and a physio to get him up and moving again. Hopefully with better weather on the way, a few outdoor activities might make a difference.
Mary Bart is the chair of Caregiving Matters, an Internet-based charity that offers education and support to family caregivers.
Smarten up
Looking good often means feeling better so here’s a few reasons to spruce up your appearance.
1. Your confidence will improve.
2. You tell the world that you are important.
3. You will stand out in a crowd.
4. Your mental health will improve.
5. You showcase your style, creativity and personality.
6. Your attitude will get a boost.
7. People will want to be with you.
8. You’ll have more energy.
Images: CanStock. Shutterstock.
