You do so much to make sure that the children in your life are healthy, safe, happy, etc. How often do you tell them to get enough sleep, drink plenty of water, sleep eight hours a day and exercise? Probably countless times.

And yet, sometimes, you may not do that same thing for yourself. It is not uncommon. A lot of people struggle with this.

We may make a plan to get to bed on time, eat more healthily this week, or go on walks, only to have that plan fall through. We get stuck in this cycle, and it continues on and on.

In this week’s latest podcast episode produced by EveryDay Strong, we talked to Kristin Erskine, a therapist at Phoenix Rebellion. She said, “sometimes when we are as self-critical as we tend to be, we tend to get stuck in that. We can easily get caught up in a negativity loop.”

Kristin discusses the concept of negativity bias. This means that our brain makes us remember the things that did not go well for us, and we are more likely to dwell on or fixate on mistakes.

So, how do we solve this? Kristin says that one successful strategy for solving this cycle is to REMEMBER. She says, “look at what has worked because it does two things. It says I’ve done this before. And I can do this because I did it before. So it’s doable.”

Why is making sure I am well-rested, drinking enough water, and exercising important? Kristin says that “we don’t realize how much it impacts us. I think of us not getting the water we need, the sleep, the nutrition, the exercise. It’s like running your car and not getting the oil changed. Eventually, it will run into the ground. Things will not work as smoothly. And eventually, it’ll stop functioning. So it’s vital.”

These mundane activities matter because they reinforce that you need to take care of yourself to take care of others. When we take the time to be deliberate about taking care of our physical health, it makes it easier to care for the children in our lives. When you take care of yourself, the children in your life will benefit. It then becomes worthwhile because it is a self-reinforcing cycle.

Kristin says that true self-care is just that. It is getting those eight glasses of water so that you can think clearly. It is making sure to sleep for eight hours. This may not be as glamorous as social media portrays self-care, but it is more sustainable and should be celebrated.

Love and take care of yourself the way you would to your child. Take care of your physical needs because the benefits are countless when those basic needs are met.

United Way of Utah County is on a mission to help every child in our community feel safe, connected, and confident. You can listen to our latest podcast episode at anchor.fm/everydaystrong (or on Apple Podcast and Spotify). Learn more about us at everydaystrong.org.

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