“If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.”– Jack Kornfield.
Therapist’s self-care is a popular and evasive topic these days. We all know that it is good to take care of ourselves and many of us still struggle to know how to apply self-care principles to our daily lives. To me, self-care means living a life that is aligned with and honors our internal experiences, feelings, and values and creating practices, habits, and rituals that support it. I am sharing some tips on how to infuse your life as a therapist with intentional self-care practices throughout your day, which will allow your day to flow more effortlessly and with joy.
Set the intention before each day/session.
Bringing intention and awareness to whatever we do helps us feel more engaged and present. Setting an intention in a form of an affirmation, a prayer, or a phrase can allow us to bring our focus and attention where we want them to be. Before my sessions I try to find a moment to bring my attention to my heart and say to myself:
May this be a healing space.
May I be a channel of compassion, love, and acceptance.
May my words offer peace, ease, and clarity.
May I remain centered and connected to my heart.
Carl Rogers shared: “Before every session, I take a moment to remember my humanity. There is no experience that this man has that I cannot share with him, no fear that I cannot understand, no suffering that I cannot care about, because I too am human. No matter how deep his wound, he does not need to be ashamed in front of me. I too am vulnerable. And because of this, I am enough. Whatever his story, he no longer needs to be alone with it. This is what will allow his healing to begin.”
Drink water throughout the day. There are numerous known benefits of staying hydrated. Providing our bodies, including the brain, with hydration allows us to concentrate better and to feel more alive and energized. The properties of water are many, and include cleansing, purifying, flowing, revitalising, and nourishing.
Tune into your physical sensations during and after each session. The body always speaks to us through sensations, including potential pain, constriction, tension, openness, expansion, etc. Do you notice some constriction in your ribcage as you sit with a particular client? Or tension that runs up and down your back? Get curious about the information that those sensations hold, give them a voice. Breathe into them and allow your body to relax after you receive its message.
Move your body. I noticed that stretching and moving my body before I sit down at my desk to see clients create a sense of openness and flow in my body and mind and allows me to be more present and effective. I recommend incorporating stretching, moving, jumping, dancing, hopping, shaking before and/or in between sessions to ground yourself and reset.
Manage your schedule intentionally and with care. Don’t let the schedule run your life. Take agency. I suggest looking at your schedule every once in a while and checking in with yourself about how makes you feel. Do you sense openness and excitement or stress and constriction? Those and other feelings are your cues regarding potential changes that you need to make. Finding the right balance in your schedule a process that can take some time. But however long it takes, your best navigation system is inside you.
Speak kindly to yourself. If you tend to be critical of yourself, perhaps it is time to soften and practice kindness and self-compassion. Notice when you are being blaming and critical and breathe into that space, opening your heart for various experiences to enter as they are, without the need to judge them or yourself.
Do what you love each day, even if it is for 5-10 minutes. For me a creative art practice or being in nature are two of my main go-to practices that always help me tap into the vibrancy and excitement in life. I used to feel that if I don’t have 2 hours to paint, there is no point in trying. However, I now learned that even 10-15 minutes of collaging, drawing, or playing with paints can be deeply satisfying. I also practice a daily walk in the park, sky gazing, and interacting with flowers and animals as a way to recharge.
Call parts of you home at the end of each day. As therapists, we spend long hours attuning and listening to other people’s stories, feelings, and experiences. Most therapists are highly empathic beings who feel deeply about other people. Whether or not you believe in the idea of energy, it can be helpful to call all fragments and aspects of you back home into your heart at the end of each day. You can approach this practice as an amusing imaginary exercise or infuse it with the energetic and symbolic meaning. Either way, it can help you center and regroup yourself after spending your day in the world.