Self-Care Reflection through Subtraction (July Self-Care Challenge Day 1)

@SoulfullyAButterfly

Imagine that you cannot self-care for one whole month. How would this change your life? Be honest and share your answers. This is our starting point - realizing that we do need self-care, already do some form of self-care, but can always use the improvement.

@SoulfullyAButterfly

I've been there to some extent. It would feel like a month of depression or a month following a massive change in you life. Basically, a time where all comforts feel like they are in flux and self care and betterment routines are having to fall behind new focus or current circumstance. It's something inconvenient, but you can probably ultimately come back from it better than you might think.

Like others have shared. Physically, I would look and feel terrible with a whole month of no self care.

But emotionally I think the value I put on myself, my life, my contributions to the world and those around me would be non existent. This, I think, is the part that thinking about it makes want to cry. Having been in a similar spot earlier in my life, i now dread that feeling. It feels like I am in a hole where nothing matters to me, so why even bother. And the more ugly things got, the way I figured out for them not to hurt was to not care. It was a never ending cycle.

Today, I would like to learn more about self worth, so that I can learn how to continue to heal and learn not to make the same mistakes again.

With serious chronic illnesses, care is essential and vital. Without self-care my survival would depend on care by others and even with that my health would likely significantly decline as without participation needs can only be met so far.

I imagine I would be miserable. Lonely, out of touch with myself, a pyschical disaster, burnt out and exhausted.

A month without ANY self care? I don’t think you would sooner than a month without self care. So the way it would affect my life would be that it would end and I would literally be dead.

No self care for a month? Anxiety would be much worse because there would be nothing to help calm it. SH would be worse because there would be nothing to distract and help remember to be gentle. Isolation would deepen because there wouldn't be any socializing. The house would be a wreck and the yard would be a jungle. The garden and flowers would d*e

@SoulfullyAButterfly

Imagine that you cannot self-care for one whole month. How would this change your life?

Okay, I am going to go as far as no bathing, brushing teeth or hair, or changing clothes for an entire month. If I do not bathe for an entire month, I will be all gross and dirty. I will smell like death, and that is not good. Let's not brush my teeth. I will get plaque that will make my mouth so nasty that bacteria will grow in there and it could make my teeth turn green, then they will eventually need to be pulled out due to decay. On to the hair, shall we? I would have rat's nests so bad that my head would have to be shaved because I haven't combed it in a month, not to mention the creepy crawlers that feed on dirty bodies would become your best friend. Not changing your clothes would make you stink even worse, especially when you don't change your bra and underwear. You will get an odor that you do not want. Once a week is better than none, but at least every other night if not every night. I know these things from a major breakdown 10 years ago and I went from taking care of myself bathing every night and brushing my hair 2× A day and teeth once a day to bathing once a week and rarely combing my hair and teeth occasionally. It's been a long road to recovery and still have a long way to go, and the other night I decided to start bathing every night and comb my hair 2× A day like I used to before my breakdown in '12. Thank you!

I would feel exhausted and burnt out. It would also negatively impact my productivity by feeling not energetic to carry out my daily tasks.

What exactly do u mean when saying self-care? People most probably have different ideas of it.

Hey @Angrywoman11, I agree, everyone has a different definition for self-care, essentially here, whatever you do for yourself, that brings you comfort, an act of caring for *yourself*. It could be anything from setting boundaries with someone not good for your mental health, to cutting off some food ingredient that causes discomfort, from trying a new hobby to taking a walk in your neighborhood, anything counts as self-care, that makes you feel cared for and supports your mental, emotional, physical, overall well-being. ❤

If I could not self care for a month I would probably be a monster of a corpse because I would fall into such a deep depression that I would not make it out alive

What an interesting prompt, initially I was thinking "oh well I do bare minimum self care there's nothing to say here." But self care isn't limited to weather you did an hour of hot yoga and primal screaming followed by meditating in a field of flowers with silent cows. It's so much more subtle than that.

Without self care for a month - I'd smell aweful, my skin would be dry and painful, I'd probably have ground my teeth to dust, eating minimally my stomach would hate me, my IBS would flare and stomach acid would rule every morning. -- not to mention how damn tired I'd be, how desperate and unhappy.

Without self care, I wouldn't be able to walk, my back would be in agony, and the disks would slip regularly. I would be stuck in my room, I've been in that position before and thinking about it just makes me sad 😔

With no self care I'd become a hermit, never interacting with anybody or doing anything, every day would be the same painful boring day.

With no self care I'd be lost.

I never realised quite how much care I show myself to just exist, ha happy tears 💚🐦

@SoulfullyAButterfly

First of all, I would really like to appreciate this idea of self care. I love to see how our community is growing by different and creative events and challenges and stuff. They're fun as well as super helpful to participate ❤

@Sunisshiningandsoareyou

I forgot to be grateful to sunny for tagging me earlier in the main post of this. Thanks for always remembering me. You are the sweetest. And, I am trying my best to get back to the forums again hehe 👀💖

Now getting back to our question, I can't even imagine this. Not taking self care for a month is gonna be really a horrible experience. I would feel physically, mentally and emotionally unstable. It is really difficult to live without self care. Because self care isn't really about doing something new daily. It's about practicing your daily routine which helps you to stay healthy and happy. So it's really important to keep yourself physically and mentally healthy 🧡

@LovetoGod

Aww ofcourse I remember you always, lovely Love and there's no need to thank haha! 💖 Take all your time getting back around the forumland, we got thisss! 🤗

I really like your answer and it is same for me also, hard to even imagine a lot of time without self-care.

Initially I too thought, that maybe I don't do enough for self-care, but you're so right, every day, every moment we are presented with so many choices, and every time we make a choice for something that benefits us either emotionally, physically or mentally, that's us caring for ourselves. I still think there's room for improvement and becoming more consistent though lol. 🙈

@Soulfullyabutterfly

Awesome prompt, Soul, I think this is like reverse psychology lol, "Think of what happens without X so you start valuing X more in your life, without taking it for granted", brilliance at its peak, I should say. ❤

Life will become 1000X worse without making choices that support my sustainability and wellbeing. Self-Care choices are *essential*.

@Sunisshiningandsoareyou

Hehe thanks. I totally agree with you sunny. Life will become really worse without self care. We should try our best to take care of ourselves and we can always improve 💖

@SoulfullyAButterfly

No self care for a month😮!!

Okay so I can't describe so briefly like others did.But I can definitely tell that it'll damage me mentally,physically,spiritually and all.

I can't even imagine how I'll look omg!! But maybe I won't die.But living like that would also look like no better than dying.

Self care is so very important!!!!

@SoulfullyAButterfly

Imagine that you cannot self-care for one whole month. How would this change your life? Be honest and share your answers. This is our starting point - realizing that we do need self-care, already do some form of self-care, but can always use the improvement.

Oh jeeze, TW- it would make me end up in a crisis for an entire month 😀 self care keeps me sane

I am about to find this out over the next two months, unfortunately. I still get up and shower so take care of myself but I have a work commitment that I cannot get out of unless I were to quit. So far, my appetite is pretty poor, I'm losing weight (right now that is not a bad thing as i was too heavy to begin with, clearly in the obese category) and I work 7 days a week. I have been prone to more panic attacks in recent weeks, although it's now been 3 days since I have had any. I imagine my burnout will continue but I'm looking forward to going on leave in October once this project is completed. At the moment, life in general is too mentally draining so I don't have the mental capacity at the moment to search for a new job.

@SoulfullyAButterfly

I don't have to imagine it, I lived it. And I went mad. I lost touch with reality, I was the shadow of myself.

@SoulfullyAButterfly

Imagine that you cannot self-care for one whole month. How would this change your life?

Not being able to self-care would decrease my quality of life immensely. On one hand, I would experience a decrease of my mental wellbeing and on the other hand, it would damage my overall health. This would lead to me not being able to function any more and could even be potentially dangerous.

I would become a very hollow soul. Maybe even near death. If I didn't eat right, didn't exercise, wash my face, my body. . . Part of my self care would be caring for others. So, not only would I be in pretty poor shape physically and mentally, I would be empty emotionally because I would feel deep loneliness.

To be honest, if I couldn’t do self care for a month, I would die.

Or experience a Joker arc!

Either way, probably not a good idea eh?

@SoulfullyAButterfly

Speaking from experience from the other side

I am married to a man who has a seizure disorder and COPD. He also had a heart attack a few years ago. He mentally gave up about 8 years ago. He stopped bathing, brushing his teeth, and changing his clothes. He didn't leave his bed except to go to the toilet. He wanted all his food and drink brought to him. He slept most of the day. He was very kind and quiet. He couldn't tell that he smelled terrible. He did not require affection and could not return it. He had no interest in anyone or anything. He would not seek therapy. He canceled doctor's appointments. This is a very intelligent man. He just received a diagnosis that had a prognosis with no cure, he lost his career, and he became so depressed, that he gave up.

We are currently separated.

💜💕If I could not self-care for one month💜💕

I would be an absolute mess

I would probably end up in hospital;

💜💕I would lose all the resources that help me stay balanced💜💕

This actually happened after I bore/delivered my son last year. I was unkempt per se. I'm glad my mom is nearby & I was at least fed and rested because of her.

Would make me very depressed and very tired.

@SoulfullyAButterfly

If I can't self care for a whole month, I would end up overthinking a lot, my focus would become a mess, and I believe I wouldn't have the guts not to judge myself. Also, emotionally, I would get quite hectic and it would put me out of form at studies, work and with friends too, I beleive. It would also affect my family.l and everyday habits.

Thank you for the open ended question, Soulful. 😊

Imagine that you cannot self-care for one whole month. How would this change your life? Be honest and share your answers. This is our starting point - realizing that we do need self-care, already do some form of self-care, but can always use the improvement.

I am already going through quite a busy time, in the sense that I have a lot on mentally, physically and emotionally, if I couldn't do self-care for one whole month, I would end up running on auto-pilot, I would feel depleted constantly, and I would find it difficult to find meaning or even to to smile.

@SoulfullyAButterfly

Imagine that you cannot self-care for one whole month. How would this change your life?

A really interesting question! I think my mental health would plummet and so would my physical health too. I would feel sad and irritable all the time. I think it would impact my relationships too and of course my ability to listen. I go through ups and downs with self care and it's always noticeable when I start letting some things go/slip.

🦊

@SoulfullyAButterfly

I've not been able to perform one aspect of self care for a whole year and almost 5 months. I consider working and making money for myself an act of self care.

Its exhausting, depressing, unhelpful, and anxiety filled. I've had self-harming thoughts because of it.

@SoulfullyAButterfly lovely post soul

If we did not self-care it would affect our confidence and not create balance in our life