PERSONAL SELF-CARE PLAN

For Professional Excellence, Personal Well-Being, and Balance in Life.

Self-care to me is about nourishing yourself physically, emotionally, mentally, socially, spiritually, and professionally in order to be able to assist, lead, and connect with others successfully.

With teacher burnout becoming more and more commonly discussed and experienced, it is essential to have a robust self-care plan in place, especially in a field that is heavily reliant on emotional labour.

This is especially important to me as a teacher with ADHD and chronic illness because, although I will never let myself be held back by them, self-care is critical to keeping them in check and allowing me to pursue my passions in life!

SELF-CARE FOR ALL AREAS

Emotional

For Emotional self-care I...

Give myself positive recognition for personal progress or accomplishments
Give myself positive affirmations
Practice expressing my feelings and using proper, helpful communication methods in all aspects of my life
Listen to music

Physical

For Physical self-care I...

Keep a consistent sleep schedule
Exercise daily (whenever and however possible)
Endeavour to eat more home-cooked meals and to meal prep consistently
Shower daily or have a bath to reduce stress and muscle fatigue

Psychological

For Psychological self-care I...

Go to counselling as needed (alone or with my partner)
Am looking into ADHD coaches to assist me with managing my time, energy, and requirements, and learning strategies to assist me in reaching success
Access the medications I need to live a healthy and happy life
Journal when needed to process my emotions, situations, and experiences in a more healthy way

Social

For Social self-care I...

Schedule regular dates with my friends and my partner
Connect in person or over the phone with friends and family often
Play soccer at least once a week with my team, and attend at least one martial arts class to connect with friends there
Maintain healthy relationships with my family, my friends, coworkers, and my partner
Set and hold reasonable boundaries around my work-life balance
Have my family, friends, and partner's support always

Spiritual

For Spiritual self-care I...

Read literature and contemplate larger-than-human ideas and themes
Watch meaningful movies and listen to stories that are moving, inspirational, or that deal with the spirit of humans or nature
Make time for nature with hikes, spending time outside, and going on walks (especially with my dog!)
Continue to become more aware of myself, my needs, and the strategies I may need to adapt to changes through self-reflection

Professional

For Professional self-care I...

Continue to pursue meaningful work and connection through my love of teaching and learning
Work to improve and enhance my time-management skills alongside my executive functioning
Forge positive, reciprocal relationships with coworkers
Keep track of my work-life balance while always seeking to improve it and/or shift it as needed to accommodate the different phases of my life, needs of my work, and needs of my family
Attend professional development to keep learning and growing, and to find more strategies to help me as a teacher and as a person.

CURRENT SELF CARE PRACTICES

BREATHING

Currently I use different breathing practices to assist in managing my emotions, self-regulating, and to generally help me manage better.
One specific technique I use, other than traditional deep breathing, is the box breathing method. This method breathes in and out in four-counts, with a four-count breath-hold in between the inhale and exhale.

BUILDING AND MAINTAINING MY ROUTINE

I have worked very hard on setting up a routine, and I continue to work to have it become instictive to follow. I must work very hard to manage my routines, be they sleep, daily activity planning, meals, or exercise, because my ADHD makes me prone to falling out of routines. I am very successful, but having a consistent routine is key to keeping me on that track, and to improving!

CONSISTENT EXERCISE AND ATHLETICS

I strive to exercise with at least one activity every day to release stress, manage my ADHD, and to maintain healthy habits. During the pandemic this was a challenge, however I did, return to my sports post-COVID regularly

My current sports are:

Soccer
Basketball
Multi-sport
Muay Thai
Brazilian JiuJitsu
Fitness Kickboxing

HAVING CONSISTENT 'GREEN' TIME

This is a newer self-care aspect that is still in the process of being implemented, but I am trying to have at least a half hour daily of 'green' time, or to have at least 1-2 larger activities that take place outdoors per week such as a hike, camping trip, ski day, or a variety of others. This also has inspired attempts to create more green spaces in my home, via the use of indoor herb/vegetable gardens, and attempts to keep houseplants alive—should my attempts fail, I also have been experimenting with decorative (fake) greenery and flowers to ensure my success.

MEDICATIONS AND SUPPLEMENTS

To maintain my health, manage my stress and ADHD, and to keep me on track I am sure to take my medications daily, alongside my supplement regime to keep my body and mind both strong and healthy. This includes attending my regular appointment every 3 months for treatments to reduce my chronic migraines, and dosing medication every month to keep them at bay; I am ecstatic to report that I am down to only 3-4 migraine days a month as a result of this, and they are of a low-moderate enough intensity to continue to work through.

COUNSELLING AND ADHD COACHING

For my mental health, ADHD management, and my relationship success with friends, family, and my partner, I attended regular counselling sessions, but now I attend on an as-needed basis. I had utilized the addition of an ADHD coach to specifically assist me in that realm of my life, and now attend that service on an as-needed basis as well. These services help me stay grounded, focused, and more able to handle everything that life can throw at me. In short these self-care techniques will keep me healthy, happy, and able to support myself, my students, and my family as best as I can, without burning out.

SELF-CARE GOALS

My 3 Self-Care Goals are currently:

1. To become more self-aware by practicing mindfulness

2. To build up good health habits including sleeping well, eating regularly, and exercising consistently

3. Drinking more water to stay hydrated, healthy, and keep my body happy

LET’S CONNECT

Please ask me any questions you may have. I look forward to hearing from you!

“With every act of self-care your authentic self gets stronger, and the critical, fearful mind gets weaker. Every act of self-care is a powerful declaration: I am on my side, I am on my side, each day I am more and more on my own side.”