What Climate And Weather Can Tell Us About Self-Care.

When talking about climate change astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson references what happens in your community, your neighborhood, on your street right now as the weather.  So, snow today, rain tomorrow, fog Tuesday, and finally sun on Friday are all how the weather works.  Weather is what is happening outside right now.

Climate, however, is a different discussion.  Climate is the trend overall not just on your block but on the entire planet over time.  Like, a loooooong time.  Not just next week when it is supposed to snow, but over an extended time.  And over that time we can see patterns.  Patterns that are trending a certain way (in this example those patterns are trending to be warmer than they were), and that entire mapping of a pattern creates a picture of the overall health and stability of the system of climate.  More info on all this here.

Now, what on Earth does that have to do with self-care?  Exactly this.  Self-care is sold like it is the weather, when really what we need is a climate of self-care. 

Self-care, as many people see and talk about it, involves small things and quick fixes.  Baths, relaxing nights reading, talking a walk, doing something that you enjoy.  While all of those things are great, that isn’t really self-care at its best. 

Self-care is creating an overall trend of caring for yourself.  Do I care if you shower yourself with pedicures, bath time treats, and binging Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday?  Not really.  I mean, that can all be great of course, but that isn’t really self-care. 

What I am talking about is a long-term commitment to bringing joy, peace, and stability to your life.  Like…deep down.  So, in my mind ladies, I will never again talk to you about self-care without mentioning financial care.  Or relationship care.  Or workplace care.  Or community care.  Because when we commit to a caring way of living, we are committing to climate change.  Not to the weather. 

So here is what you need to know to get started:

1.  The climate takes a long time to change.  Deciding to care deeply doesn’t mean that you change your entire life today.  You purchase a yoga membership, dedicate yourself to overhauling your finances, volunteer 3 times a week, and head into deep therapy to figure out your relationships.  In fact, please, please do not do all of that all at once.  That is a recipe for failure.  Change takes time.  Pick small things.  Make sure you are doing the easy stuff as well as the hard stuff.  Commit to the future version of yourself with whom you want to spend the rest of your life.  Change slowly, for her.

2.  If you are stressed and out-of-balance you have not failed.  The brilliant thing about the climate is that it isn’t really all that affected by the weather.  If you have a stressful time in your life—be it a day or a week, a time where you are doing nothing but living and doing what needs doing…You Are NOT Failing.  In fact, I am going to argue, that is totally normal.  Nobody is balanced all the time.  I do a lot.  I run this business and another, I volunteer on boards, raise children, sometimes manage a home (not well, but it gets done), and more.  I have friends and family whom I love and want to spend time with.  But sometimes all of that isn’t balanced.  Sometimes I worry more about one thing vs. another.  That is okay and normal.  The overall trend is towards caring deeply for myself, and I am careful to take time off as a maintenance strategy, not only as an emergency situation.  You can too.

3.  This is something that will always evolve.  I know you want to hear me say that you will figure it out, and then you won’t need to worry about self-care ever again.  It is just…you will.  You will forget (I do), you will reprioritize as you evolve and your life changes, you will need to erase the entire system and start again.  More than once.  That is totally okay.

Remember, we are going for an overall trend of self-care.  Caring for your body and mind, your sense of meaning and purpose, your finances, relationships, work-life, community, all a little bit at a time. 

Over time.

Let’s commit to self-care climate change, and stop trying to control the weather. 

Are you feeling like the idea of “self-care” seems more illusive to you than ever before? That’s okay, we feel that way too.

During the last two years, one of the things that have come to the forefront of discussion is how we, as humans, care for ourselves.  How we deeply nourish and care for our bodies, minds, create meaning and purpose in our lives, and spread that into our communities around us. 

Hence, all the talk about self-care. 

Here is what I think is really challenging about the idea of self-care.  That it is always talked about, sold, and marketed as the weather of care systems, when really it isn’t that at all.

What does that mean?  Well, let me tell you.