My 2019 New Year’s Resolution: More Self Care

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Yes! Happy New Year everyone! 2018 has been an interesting year. I began the year very enthusiastic and excited having just returned to Taipei after spending 5 months traveling and studying yoga in India. I spent the year experimenting and exploring ideas and different ways I can help spread yoga and acroyoga in Taipei. I collaborated with interesting people & events, created specialized classes and workshops, and even came so close to opening my own studio. All this experimenting was to see if I can really make yoga my FULL TIME job. As the months went on and 2018 slowly began to slip away, I began to lose my steam and even became very discouraged. As the year was coming to an end and I realized that I did not achieve what I wanted to, I was about start giving myself a hard time, but instead I did a bit self reflection and realized that what I needed more of was some self care. Now when I say self care, I don’t mean going to the massage shop or getting my hair done (though there’s nothing wrong with that). 

Here’s my list of 5 ways to practice self care in the new year:

1. Practicing meditation & self awareness.

Getting to know my true self better and understanding my own needs is very important. I have spent a lot of time in the past worrying about what others expected of me and I even made many life choices based off of what I thought other people wanted for/from me. But as I begin to spend more time getting to know myself better and beginning to realize my own needs, I begin to make decisions and choices that contribute to my overall well being. This includes deciding not to open a yoga studio at this point in my life (though I wanted to do it so bad!). 

2. Spending more time with people I love. 

My family & friends are my support system and it is sometimes very easy to go a few weeks or few months without calling my mom or catching up with my close friend over lunch. In this fast paced life, it is so easy to get caught up in our own happenings but in this new year I would like to intentionally set time for listening to the people I care about and spending more quality time with them. 

3. Creating a comfortable environment for myself. 

Although I am currently living in a tiny tiny apartment, I find it important to create a comfortable space for myself. This means keeping things clean and tidy like washing my sheets often so I can climb into a fresh smelling fluffy bed each night. This means lighting up candles or putting my favorite essential oils into the diffusor. This means even having my favorite yoga mat & accessories cleaned, set up and ready for me to practice on each day! 

4. Taking better care of my physical body. 

We only get one body so lets take care of it! For me this means getting good quality sleep, eating healthy (I plan to cook more!) and maintaining a healthy yoga practice (consistency is key!). Not only is it important for me to commit to stepping onto my mat, but really committing to giving my body the practice that it needs each day. This ties in with #1 (self awareness) because practicing self awareness will help me to understand how to sequence a practice that will honor and respect my body and its daily needs. Maybe today I am able to test/push my limits but maybe tomorrow my body will ask me to take it down a notch. Reminding myself that more does not always mean better!

5. Study study study.

Last but not least, this part of my self care routine is to give myself the gift of knowledge by reading and studying materials that will enhance my own yoga practice and grow myself as an instructor. This might even include studying with teachers I admire and attending workshops when given the opportunity to. Well really, this doesn’t even have to be yoga related but even studying material that will help me to become a better human being, I’ll take it! 

What I have come to realize is that the more self care I practice, the more I am able to care for others. I become an overall more pleasant person and this makes it easier for people to be around me. I notice that I become more patient, more empathetic, more kind. 

How can I expect to care for the people around me if I don’t start first by caring for myself? How can I be a supportive and encouraging yoga instructor if I don’t allow myself to receive this type of treatment first? Self care is not always easy but I hope that in the new year we can all start to see the importance of incorporating this practice into our lives. Happy New Year!

Here’s to a better you and a better me in 2019!