Taking Care Of Yourself Means Doing What Is Best For You
Doing what is best for us in favor of what we want is not always a difficult temptation to overcome. That is, how many times do we experience the feeling of not wanting to carry out some task or activity knowing that we need to do it? Sometimes apathy is such that the only thing that comforts us is to sit idly by, paralyzed.
Of course, it is true that at certain times rest and disconnection are essential. We need to stop and take time. Now, if we overdo the rest and the time we disconnect because we feel apathetic, we may feel worse. In other words, it could be that at the end of the day that state of reluctance increases simply by being disconnected from everything for so many hours.
Therefore, in certain circumstances in which we are going through a state of constant apathy and lack of motivation, we may need to take care of ourselves, taking into account that taking care of ourselves sometimes means doing what is best for us, instead of doing what we most want.
Do what is best for us, even if it is not what we want the most
So what does it mean to do what is best for us? It means taking actions that we need to do to help ourselves feel better. For example, I feel depressed and what I most want is to sleep all day, but I know that if I do that at the end of the day I will feel worse from lying down for so many hours doing nothing.
So I am aware that going out for coffee with a friend, among other things, could help me feel a little better (or not feel worse) at the end of the day. So in this situation we ask ourselves: what do I need? What could help me feel really better? If what I need contradicts what I want, taking care of myself means prioritizing what is best for me.
It is essential to try not to get carried away by our state of apathy and demotivation. According to the DSM-V, apathy corresponds to motivational and behavioral symptoms within depressive symptoms and is a decrease or inability to experience pleasure and enjoyment. If apathy is temporary, it shouldn’t be a problem; If it lasts for more than a few weeks, we could start talking about some kind of mood disorder.
Self-care, a way of taking responsibility for our well-being
Self-care implies becoming aware of our well-being, taking responsibility for our health. Let us bear in mind that the concept of health, as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), is the complete state of physical and social well-being of a person, and not just the absence of disease. Therefore, the definition of health encompasses different aspects of the human being, which goes beyond the traditional concept of health.
It often happens that if we think about the concept of health we limit ourselves to the physical part, mental health being just as important. For example, if we have the flu, we will probably go to the family doctor to prescribe a treatment, which may be to rest and take certain drugs. Likewise, we will have to take certain measures such as keeping warm, not going outside if it is cold, and so on.
In short, if we talk about diseases or physical difficulties, we clearly see the need to take care of ourselves. However, when we talk about mental health, we are not as aware of the self-care we need. We overlook that taking care of ourselves – when we feel sad or listless – is just as important as taking care of ourselves when we have the flu or a cold. Which sometimes implies doing what is best for us, instead of what we feel like doing.
