Self-Care A-Z: Back to Basics - Breathing, Balancing, and Being Aware

by Donia Addison, MSW, LCSW

     Self-care doesn’t have to be complicated. The most important thing about self-care is that it’s personal to you. Recently, I experienced an especially hard few weeks in my personal and professional life. I had to reevaluate my own self-care strategies. After deep reflection, I went back to my basics: Breathing, Balancing, and Being Aware!

Breathing

     Breathing is an involuntary, unconscious act. What if we made it a conscious act?  Recently, a friend shared a specific breathing technique to help reduce stress and transition from one activity to the next.  Before every new activity, e.g., work to home, take six deep breaths. The breaths should be deep enough that you feel your abdominal muscles contract. After taking the six deep breaths, transition as normal to the next activity. 

     When I feel extra stressed or have racing thoughts, using this breathing technique does three things for me: slows my thoughts, relaxes my body, and deepens my presence. While breathing seems like such a simple task, it can have meaningful effects on our whole body.

Balancing

     The word “balance” can be dissected so many ways, especially as it pertains to self-care. We could look at balancing commitments, eating a balanced diet, or maintaining balance in our bodies. My self-care focus is on balancing responsibilities/commitments. As a mom, wife, colleague, and a host of other roles, it can be hard to balance everything. 

     Sometimes I feel as if I am on a balance beam and one wrong step could be detrimental. To combat this feeling, I am intentional with my responsibilities and my capacities. We can’t do everything all of the time. We have to recognize that sometimes something will not get our attention, and that’s okay!  I realize my self-care is important; therefore, I must balance my needs with the needs of those important to me.

Being Aware

     Becoming more in tune with ourselves is imperative to determine what we need for self-care. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, a body scan is one of the first skills I teach clients. The body scan allows individuals to become more aware of their bodies. We start at the head and work our way down, teaching them to just notice a body part and how it feels. 

     Imagine approaching self-care in the same way. What if we just noticed areas in our life that we weren’t in tune with and did something to change it? Maybe it’s as simple as noticing a deadline looming or identifying stressors and developing a plan to reduce those stressors. Becoming more aware of ourselves and our needs allows us to engage in self-care with intentionality.

     Sometimes it’s important to go back to the basics of self-care. My basics are breathing, balance, and being-aware. What are your basics? How will you go back to them? For some ideas, check out The A-to-Z Self-Care Handbook for Social Workers and Other Helping Professionals. For example, the “A” entry is Awareness and the “B” entry is Balance. Develop your own Basic Self-Care Plan!

Donia Addison, MSW, LCSW, is a mental health therapist in a Southern Indiana school district. She has more than fifteen years of experience in the social services field and is passionate about preventing professional burnout. Her hope is to inspire others to find their own self-care journey.