Blog Post 8: Self Care for Type C
Thanks to all who came to our first talk at the JCC last week! We appreciate your enthusiasm and engagement on this topic - it was wonderful to be together, in person, sharing our common experiences with Type C traits and discussing better ways to manage our health. We look forward to the next in person talk and hope that you will join us.
So what are we discovering about self care for Type C? Self care is quite a buzzword right now, and for Type C people, it’s more than just taking the odd bubble bath or getting a massage. It’s a deep commitment to recognizing our own needs and prioritizing health - things that require awareness, routine, and practice.
Self care can mean different things for different people. The key here is to focus on ourselves and think about what we need. Self care is NOT about adding more to the to-do list; it’s being aware of how we’re spending our time on a daily basis. Are these activities or tasks in line with taking care of ourselves and our health? For some people, self care might be about saying NO more, doing less, and letting go of responsibility for certain things. It might be about being a little selfish and thinking of ways to take more time for ourselves, whether it is to exercise, meet up with a friend, or just read for 10 minutes.
For people with Type C traits, focusing on self care is not something we think about enough. We might start with simply noticing how little time we make for ourselves - and noticing what DOES show up when we do make the time. Is it guilt? A worry about someone being upset with me if I do that, say no, etc.? It’s important to notice the long-term cost of people pleasing and emotional suppression. When we feel guilty or bad, we can remind ourselves it is important to make this shift because of the negative impact on our mental and physical health. Some things we can remind ourselves:
“I need to take some time to focus on myself because despite the urge to focus more on others, these behaviors have kept me stuck in the long run.”
“I need to make a change and that starts with being willing to feel bad or guilty when I start to take care of myself in some small way.”
Starting with small steps can make this easier. For example, walking home from work to get a little exercise and unwind instead of making a bigger commitment to going to the gym for an hour.