Self healing is a journey that looks different for everyone. However, there are some common principles that can guide you on your path to healing. The most important of these is self-love. This is the foundation of all healing.
The nine experts and six older adults who participated in the study agreed on three main themes for self-healing: physiology, psychology, and interpersonal relations. Physiology included exercise, good sleeping and eating habits, and chronic illness control.
Self-love
Whether you’re trying to heal from a traumatic break-up or unpacking feelings of self-worthlessness from a skewed childhood, you must learn to love yourself first. Although the concept of self-love can get a bad rap, every mental health professional acknowledges it as a core component of good mental health.
People high in self-love often make healthy choices, such as eating well and exercising regularly. They also nurture themselves with activities like journaling, listening to music, and spending time in nature.
When you’re loving yourself, your inner voice speaks kindly to you and replaces the critical, less gentle voices in your head that offer disparagement. In this way, it empowers you to let go of toxic relationships and behaviors that no longer serve you. It also makes you more assertive, as you’ll know that your thoughts, feelings, and needs matter. You’ll be more likely to say “no” to people who treat you poorly or ignore your boundaries.
Self-care
Self-care is an individual’s conscious engagement in strategies that promote healthy functioning and well-being. It can include medicines, counselling and diagnostics that are accessed fully or partially outside of formal health services. Self-care can also include other interventions that help people to take control of their own health and wellbeing such as exercise, diet, sleep and social activities.
Having a solid self-care routine can be challenging, especially with the increasing demands on our time and energy. However, taking some time for yourself can help you feel better and may even boost your productivity. Self-care doesn’t have to involve a big commitment and can be as simple as taking a bath, relaxing with a book or enjoying your favourite food.
A recent literature review used Walker and Avant’s concept analysis approach to explore the defining attributes, antecedents, and consequences of the concept of self-care. Three defining attributes were identified: awareness, self-control, and self-reliance. These characteristics are important to understand when it comes to promoting high quality, effective self-care interventions.
Mindfulness
A major part of healing from trauma is learning how to manage your emotions and self-soothe. Mindfulness is a powerful tool that helps with this.
A therapist who is trained in mindfulness can teach you how to calm your mind and focus on the present moment. This can help you reduce anxiety and depression and improve your overall well-being. Mindfulness also supports self-compassion, which is essential to surviving trauma. It has also been linked to values clarification and better behavioral self-regulation. It can also lead to a process called desensitization, which allows you to tolerate distressing thoughts and feelings that might otherwise trigger reactions.
There are many mindfulness-based treatments available, including MBSR (Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction), mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, and mindfulness-based somatic emotion regulation. You can learn more about each of these approaches by visiting their websites. Several of these sites offer tests and videos, while others provide training for professionals. You can even find a free online MBSR course hosted by UMass Medical Center.
Spirituality
Spirituality is an important dimension of life. It involves a search for meaning and purpose, belief in something bigger than oneself, and feelings of hope, love and connection. It can also include meditation, prayer, and other practices that promote a sense of wellbeing.
Research has shown that spirituality is linked to lower stress reactivity, greater feelings of well-being and more optimism. It is also associated with better sleep, higher self-esteem and a greater ability to cope with the challenges of life.
It is important to honor your pain and not brush it off. You may have been taught that pain and illness are only physical, but that isn’t true. The body and mind are one integrated system, and when you change the one, you change the other. Honoring your pain can help you release negative emotions and heal your spirit. It can also teach you about compassion. Try rubbing your hands together quickly for about 30-60 seconds and feel the energy flow through them.
