by Makhosazana Aghoghovwia
Taking care of yourself is more than just caring for your skin, hair, nails and physical appearance. Taking good care of yourself should include paying close attention to the sometimes subtle signs and symptoms that our bodies give us. Be aware of your body and the signals it communicates. Your body is not supposed to hurt. It is generally expected that the body pulses with energy and vigour when you are young, and slowly and progressively perhaps lose some of its optimal functioning gradually over time, as Harry Garuba poetically captures it here.
We are mortal beings. Aging is more than skin deep. Our bodies experience stress and strains daily. This is part of the reason sleep is crucial to the body’s recovery and vitality. Our bones and vital organs age, too. If you experience regularly occurring symptoms, then seek answers to your bodily pains. Iyanla Vanzant defines pain as an alarming reminder for us to pay attention inward now! Pain does not always have to be due to a physical ailment. Sometimes pain manifests in the physical, although it may require dealing with emotional pain also. Pay attention to yourself. Monitor changes in your body and mood. Look for correlations between what you eat, what you do, who you spend time with, how you spend your time and how it makes you feel on the inside.
The process of searching for the reasons for the bodily questions we have may sometimes require financial investments. If we can save money to prioritize investing in ourselves by earning a qualification, going on holiday or indulging in buying ourselves something on our wish lists, then spending money on ourselves for our health-sake should be a priority. Because ultimately, the well-functioning of our bodies and selves determines the quality of our everyday lives. Afterall, you only live daily (#yold), not once!
Here are 3 self-investments to prioritize (whether there are obvious, perhaps pain inducing reasons, or not):
Eye health: Having clear, focused vision is important in two senses: first, for sight, to be able to see clearly. Second, for vision, to see beyond the immediate. Get corrective glasses if you need them. Visit an optometrist to get an eye examination performed. Sometimes the “blurred vision” we encounter is more than just getting prescription glasses or contact lenses. There can be underlying issues such as cataracts and glaucoma which are part of the leading causes of visual impairment in the world and do not cause obvious symptoms such as pain in the eyes.
Period pain: If you experience severe period pain or heavy bleeding during your menstrual cycles, then find out why. There are valuable resources here and here that you can use to monitor and understand how the foods you eat and the exercises you do can have an effect on the intensity of the period pain you experience.
Mental health: The coronavirus pandemic has affected everyone. While we have been and continue to strive to be kind to ourselves and humanity, find ways of mending and coping and looking forward to what life can still be, it is important that we take good care of our mental health, too. The tools we learn and use to deal with ourselves and the way we experience life every day are vital to our survival and thriving. If you are looking for daily affirmations or sources of hope and encouragement, then consider downloading a free app called Eternal Sunshine and turn on its notifications.
Whatever your own personal journey, remember to take good care of the human being you are today and every day.
