{*Did you know you can write on Elephant? Here’s how—big changes: How to Write & Make Money or at least Be of Benefit on Elephant. ~ Waylon}

Some self-care practices are nonnegotiable.

Getting a good night’s sleep, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, or doing inner introspection are things that have been proven time after time to make life easier.

We constantly talk about other forms of self-care too that are as deep and rewarding, such as journaling, exercising, meditating, or practicing gratitude.

The truth is we all need to care for ourselves in order to live a well-balanced life that’s fairly happy. However, we can only do that if we’re willing to deem other “mundane” things important and prioritise them just as we would prioritize healthy sleeping habits or going to the gym. At the end of the day, the whole point of self-care is to improve our physical, mental, and emotional health.

Recently, I haven’t been taking good care of my mental health. Just like my body needs to move for optimal health, my mind needs to rest every now and then so I can give myself a mental break. But I don’t always give myself the time or space I need to decompress. And so I fluctuate between different mental states, causing myself unnecessary distress.

As someone who often struggles to say no, I know the consequences we have to live with if we don’t listen to our intuition. Having said that, I have come to realize that maybe the best form of self-care I have often failed to practice is knowing when and how to remove myself from the situations that cause me distress and threaten my peace of mind, values, and self-worth.

That kind of self-care is underrated, and I think we don’t talk about it enough.

We don’t talk enough about how crucial it is to sometimes say no, without having to verbalize it. Saying no to people, events, or decisions that make us unhappy or upset is self-care in disguise.

Drawing boundaries is self-care.

Saying yes to ourselves is self-care.

We all deserve to be happy and find inner peace. That’s why we need to pay attention to the things that drain us and overload us—even if it’s as silly as accepting a dinner invitation.

Doing the things that bring us joy takes a whole lot of courage. And we don’t get to feel that bravery unless we look within and examine what’s stopping us from genuinely caring for ourselves.

We can only remove ourselves from the situations that disturb our peace when we recognize that sometimes our happiness comes first. And if we want to live a happy life, we must learn to say no when it doesn’t align with our own heartfelt desires.

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