Beginning at a very young age, we receive massive amounts of messaging about how our bodies are supposed to feel and look from parents, classmates, friends, advertising, and the media. Culturally, there is a large amount of pressure and high standards that are hard to meet. A simple look in the mirror can become an unconscious moment of evaluation, judgment, and shame. 

Gratitude does not depend on your life circumstances such as health, wealth, or beauty. Even when you are suffering, annoyed, frustrated, or angry, it is still possible to find something to be grateful for. Robert Emmons, PhD. says, gratitude is, “A shift in consciousness from what we are lacking to the abundance that surrounds us.”

There is really no on the job training for caregiving for a loved one and this shift can be overwhelming, abrupt, and life altering. In some cases, self-care is also not part of the job training for caregiving professionals. Oftentimes self-care for caregivers is placed at a lower priority because of the many needs of the recipient. However, self-care practices are what make sustainable caregivers.

Mindfulness, also known as moment to moment non-judgmental self-awareness can be both receptive and accepting. Here we are willing to receive and be with all that arises whether it is pleasant, unpleasant, or even neutral. We notice sensations in the body, reactions, evaluations, thoughts, and emotions. Oftentimes we get carried away in our experience for a bit.

Friendship towards oneself is an act of self-care, but one that is often overlooked, avoided, and ignored. It is often so easy to judge, blame, and criticize ourselves causing great pain and yet so challenging at times to love, accept, and support ourselves