Self Care Tips

My favorite public radio program is This American Life. Each week they air several stories on a particular theme. The "acts," as they call them, make you laugh, cry, and think. To me it's like listening to art about ordinary, or not so ordinary, people. I usually download their podcasts so I can listen at my convenience.

On a recent walk, I listened to the story, The Battle of Words vs. Fear. It was read from a book written by a developmentally delayed man. In it he lists 183 things that scare him. Many were quite poignant, others very funny. Some, I shared with him. 

Most of us are plagued by reasonable and unreasonable fears. Sometimes we can push through the fear. Other times the fear paralyzes us or at least keeps us from doing what we want to do.

If fear is an issue for you, I would encourage you to make a list of the "fears of your life." You may want to listen to the above story to get you thinking (please note, there is a 45 second fundraising pitch before it gets to the story). After you have your list, study it. Put a check-mark by those that seem reasonable, do not keep you from living your life, or keep you safe. Put a line through the ones that are funny or don't impact your life. Circle the ones that may be problematic for you.

Now it's time to look at the fears you circled and see if you want to do anything about them. If you choose to face one, confront it with your best problem-solving techniques or get help from family, friends, or a professional to see if it can alleviated.

Self care can be about naming your fears, honoring the ones that deserve it, and working on the ones that are not helping you.