Self Care Practices
Awareness is explained by Andy Puddicombe as the difference between being in a storm and witnessing a storm. It is the difference between being outside in that storm, swept away by the wind and the rain, and sitting inside, cozy and warm by the fire, as you watch the storm pass by.
Awareness allows us to get outside of our mind and observe it in action.
Daily Self Assessments
Conducting daily check-ins with yourself allows you to come into your day grounded and self-aware. From this stance, you can avoid being swept away in the storm. Apply essential oils with soothing, grounding aromas such as Frankincense, Grounding™, or Gratitude™ to the bottoms of your feet and firmly plant them flat on the ground, ideally outside. As you stand, inhale deeply. As you exhale, evaluate your body, your mind, and your heart. What is causing you any unsettling or uncomfortable feelings? What is going right at this moment in your life? Continue to inhale and exhale while you think about the last seven days:
Self assessment check ins:
Have you felt overwhelmed?
Have you enjoyed any great meals lately? Have you moved your body enough?
Are you getting enough rest?
Have you performed any acts of service recently?
What has made you smile lately?
Awareness through the Senses
Our senses are powerful channels we can use to connect to our awareness because our senses communicate directly with our brain. For instance, touching a soft blanket or feeling the grass on our feet can help us ground ourselves when we're overwhelmed or agitated. The same is true if we intentionally utilize aromas, such as essential oils, to engage our sense of smell. Our sense of smell is amazing in the fact that it talks to the brain as soon as it senses an aroma. That is way aromas can evoke feelings and bring memories back to life. That is why many people use essential oils to deepen their focus, or promote relaxation, because they are powerful aromas that the sense of smell can benefit from. By focusing our attention on one or more of our senses we can practice awareness.
It is no secret that there is little we can control about life itself. Life has its own flow and sometimes that means that we have to face situations that we do not like. What we do have control over is how we react to life's flow of events. What we do about the uncontrollable is what defines how our life unfolds.
As you practice self care through awareness you will notice yourself become more resilient to life and what it brings.
Self-care is a personal matter and can be different for everyone. Developing a self-care plan can be crucial to your well-being and help you manage life's events in a more constructive way.
You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.
In the following sections we'll take a closer look at each of the areas of self-care and learn practical techniques to serve each of these critical areas of our lives.
Mental self-care is about finding a balance between stimulating your mind and giving yourself a "brain break". Emotional self-care addresses coming to a place of balance and well-being, allowing space for your full range of emotions to exist and express themselves in healthy ways. These two types of self care complement each other.
One way to care for your mental and emotional self care is to work on learning a new skill. Learning something new will both engage your brain and also give you an emotional boost by lifting your confidence and giving you a new outlet for emotional release.
Click the + signs below to read about more benefits!
Young Living offers several products that can benefit your mental and emotional self care journey. Click the + signs below to read more about products that can support you as a life-long learner.
Emotional self care should include emotional awareness and cultivating gratitude.
Take time each day to acknowledge what you feel without judgement. Allowing feelings to flow freely prevents them to become blocks in your journey.
Read more about the benefits of cultivating gratitude by clicking on the tabs below!
Practicing gratitude has a powerful impact on your life.
Feelings of gratitude directly activate brain regions associated with the neurotransmitter called Dopamine.
Dopamine is considered the "feel good hormone" and is associated with feelings of bliss, euphoria, motivation and concentration.
The brain is constantly looking to prove what it already believes to be true. Its belief system is created by what its owner is regularly thinking about and focusing on. When you shift your focus to something that you are grateful for, there is a release of dopamine into your brain and therefore reinforces a positive cycle.
When you choose to focus on the positive, your brain will then look for proves of that goodness, which will release dopamine, and it will make you feel good. Then a positive cycle will be created. Once you start looking for things to be grateful for, your brain will look for more things to be grateful for!
21-day gratitude challenge:
For the next 21 days, find time each day to write down 10 things you’re grateful for that day. Post them on a mirror or somewhere else where you’ll see them each day. By the end of the challenge, you’ll see over 200 things you’re grateful for.
Another powerful tool for mental and emotional self-care is meditation. The word stems from latin and it means "to ponder".
Click the + signs below for some tips to start incorporating meditation into your day.
Click on each tab below to learn more about essential oils to support your meditation practice.
- White Angelica contains 10 essential oils to create a one-of-a-kind blend
- Geranium, Ylang Ylang, Melissa, and Rose provide sweet, floral notes
- Bergamot and Melissa offer a boost of bright citrus
- Myrrh, Northern Lights Black Spruce, Hyssop, and Sacred Sandalwood balance the blend with a warm, woodsy base.
- Creates a positive atmosphere and inspire feelings of security and optimism—no matter what life throws at you.
- People also love White Angelica for its skin-beautifying benefits when applied topically.
- Add a couple drops to your favorite lotion
- Stress Away is a Young Living D. Gary Young proprietary blend
- One of YL most popular/top selling oil blends
- Promotes relaxation and a calming environment
- Apply topically or diffuse to enjoy a calming and peaceful aroma
- Great to use as a personal fragrance
- Ingredients include the naturally occurring constituent’s beta-caryophyllene, alpha-humulene, limonene, cedrol, and linalool
- Release™ is a blend with a relaxing aroma that facilitates the ability to let go of anger and frustration.
- Promotes harmony and balance when diffused.
- A blend of Ylang ylang, Geranium, Royal Hawaiian™ sandalwood, Grapefruit, Tangerine, Spearmint, Lemon, Blue cypress, Davana, Ocotea, Jasmine, Blue tansy and Rose
- Joy produces an aromatic energy that brings joy to the heart, mind, and soul
- When diffused creates a warm, comforting environment
- Contains Ylang Ylang essential oil, which inspires a joyful, balancing aromatic atmosphere
- Apply to wrists and heart to encourage feelings of happiness and joy
- Combination of floral and citrus essential oils
- Uplifts mood when used aromatically
- Diffuse Sacred Frankincense during meditation for increased spiritual awareness, grounding, and purpose
- Use for massage after activity
- Promotes the appearance of healthy-looking skin
- Reduces the appearance of uneven skin tones
- Includes the naturally occurring constituents alpha-pinene, limonene, sabinene, beta caryophyllene
- Promotes feelings of relaxation and tranquility
- Diffuse to create a focused environment
- It is believed that the Boswellia sacra species of Frankincense was brought as a gift to the baby Jesus
- Grounding™ essential oil blend is a unique combination of White Fir, Black Spruce, Ylang Ylang, Pine, and other essential oils.
- Complements feelings of stability, clarity, and spirituality.
- Grounding’s warm and entrancing aroma can create an atmosphere that is perfect for finding self-awareness and confronting negative emotions.
- Diffuse or apply it topically as you stabilize and ground your day and work to cope with life’s daily challenges.
Physical Self Care
Physical self-care often gets the all-or-nothing approach but it doesn’t have to be that way. Typical plans start in January or on Mondays and are given up before the end of the month or week. Instead, the small, simple daily lifestyle changes will help you make permanent shifts in your life.
Keep in mind that your self care does not have to look like anyone else's. Moving your body doesn't have to fit into any box of what fitness "should look like".
Focus on loving yourself and stay away from comparison.
Moving your body has countless physical, emotional and mental benefits! Click the + signs below to learn more.
Your physical self care should include proper nourishment through a healthy relationship with food. This is possible if you learn to listen to your body when it comes to eating; honor your body through what, how and when you eat and be curious as to how you feel after you eat. You can learn more about healthy eating patterns below!
Taking care of yourself is an essential part of taking care of others. The healthier the tree, the better the fruit it can offer.
Supplementing daily with good quality products that contain plant derived vitamins, minerals and other adaptogens to fuel the body with what it needs is an integral part of physical self care. Our bodies work hard on a daily basis to keep us alive and the least we can do to honor it is make sure we give it what it needs to continue to thrive. Supplements will never take the place of a balanced diet, nor should we see them as "magic pills" but we know that despite our best efforts to eat a balanced diet, there are several factors that make it is almost impossible to obtain all essential nutrients from food alone.
Keep in mind that not all supplements are the same. Knowing what you’re putting in your body is not only empowering but might also prevent harm. Before you take any supplements, investigating how a supplement’s ingredients were sourced and formulated will make a difference. To help answer these types of questions, Young Living is very transparent about our rigorous standards and innovative formulations.
Master Formula™ is a full-spectrum multivitamin that provides premium vitamins, minerals, and food-based nutrients to support general health and well-being. By using a Synergistic Suspension Isolation process—SSI technology—ingredients are delivered in three distinct forms.
- It helps energy metabolism and tissue formation.
- It helps support the normal function of the immune system.
- It supports healthy bones, hair, nail, and skin.
- It helps maintain cognitive functions.
- It helps with normal connective tissue formation.
- It provides whole-food ingredients.
Probiotics are often called “good” bacteria. They’re live bacteria and yeasts that line your digestive tract and are good for your health, especially the digestive system. Probiotics promote beneficial bacteria cultures that support your immune function and support a healthy digestive system.
- Life 9® comes in delayed-release capsules.
- It has a special bottle and cap that ensures your Life 9 stays fresh and effective.
OmegaGize3™ is an amazing addition to your routine because it combines three core daily supplements into one. It combines omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D3, and CoQ10—all important supplements to take for general well-being.
- Used daily, these ingredients work synergistically to support normal brain, heart, eye, and joint health.*
- OmegaGize3 supports normal brain, heart, eye, and joint health.
- This supplement helps prevent vitamin D deficiency.
- *These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Our joints are often the first to feel the effects of age or frequent vigorous athletic activity. Even healthy individuals need support for the natural acute inflammatory response that often accompanies exercise or a little help promoting joint flexibility and mobility to support an active lifestyle. AgilEase™ is formulated to support your joints, so you can keep living the life you love!
- It’s a beneficial supplement for athletes and active individuals.
- It helps support healthy joint flexibility and mobility.*
*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
PowerGize™ helps support stamina, performance, mental and physical vibrancy, energy levels, and strength in both men and women. It is formulated with exotic ingredients such as ashwagandha root extract, Eurycoma longifolia, and Tribulus terrestris. It is also infused with Idaho Blue Spruce, Goldenrod, and Cassia essential oils.
The Eurycoma longifolia found in PowerGize helps support the male reproductive system.* Some of the compounds in this formula are known to increase muscle size and strength, enhance tone, and accelerate recovery in men.* PowerGize also contains KSM-66, a premium ashwagandha root extract, which is touted for its properties that support immunity, mental clarity, concentration, and alertness.* This ingredient has been used as an adaptogenic herb for centuries in Indian ayurvedic medicine, as well as Southeast Asian and African folk medicine.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Poor diet, lack of movement and proper diet, and an overabundance of environmental toxins can affect internal balance and decrease energy levels.
Given the stress of our modern lives, the poor quality of our food supply, and the high load of toxins in our bodies, most of us need a basic daily supply of raw nutrients so that all our enzymes and biochemistry perform as designed.
1Resch, Elyse and Tribole, Evelyn. Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Program That Works. St. Martin’s Griffin, 1995
2https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/09/13/food-nutrients-carbon-dioxide-000511
Social Self-care is strengthening and maintaining healthy, and supportive relationships. It is seeking support during times of stress and taking time out of your day to connect others.
As humans, the relationships we form with other people are vital to our mental and emotional wellbeing, and really, our survival. A healthy relationship fulfills one of our most basic needs, which is the need to know we belong. Studies have proven that social connection provides incredible benefits. Click on the + below to see what some of those benefits are!
What does a healthy relationship look like?
A positive relationship can be shared between any two people who love, respect, encourage and help each other practically as well as emotionally. There are several components that make up a healthy relationship, and although not one will ever be perfect, it is important to seek certain traits and capabilities in order to obtain it.
Click the tabs below to learn more about the traits to look for in a healthy relationship.
Open, honest and safe communication is a fundamental part of a healthy relationship. The first step to building a relationship is making sure you both understand each other’s needs and expectations—being on the same page is very important. That means you have to talk to each other!
If you and the other person can enjoy of mutual trustworthiness, honesty, dependability, loyalty, and, as an interrelated quality, the ability to trust others, then you're off to a good start!
Empathy, the ability to withhold judgment, effective listening skills, and the ability to offer support in good times and bad are essential in a healthy relationship.
Creating boundaries is a good way to keep your relationship healthy and secure. By setting boundaries together, you can both have a deeper understanding of the type of relationship you can provide for each other. It's not a sign of secrecy or distrust — it’s an expression of what makes you feel comfortable and what you would like or not like to happen within the relationship.
“If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody.”
Supportive Products
Click the + signs below to learn more about products to support your social self care.
Summary
Congratulations on completing the self-care practices for mind, body, and soul course.
We know that by committing to taking some time for self care on a daily basis your life will be brighter. What are you most exited to make a part of your lifestyle?!