Self-care has not been a strong-suit for me in the past and, to be quite honest, is still a skill I am learning to master. I’ve always been more of a maestro at taking care of everyone else around me. While others may be better skilled than I am at this particular endeavor of self-care, I am very proud of how far I have personally come with regard to learning this element of loving myself. Although it takes a conscious effort on my part, these days I usually do pretty well. However, in adjusting to my new life here in in a new town and at a new school, I can see that there is room for improvement still. Yet, I have a lot of faith in my ability to make the adjustments I need to in order to succeed in reaching my goals, both personally and academically.
I have been responsible with regard to my presence (both physically and mentally) in my classes, studying, and doing my homework in a timely fashion. Likewise, I am financially responsible- what financial problems I do have were created by my ex-husband and I am working toward trying to correct them one day at a time, trying not to let them stress me out too much and keeping everything in perspective. I eat healthy, go to bed at a decent time to get enough sleep, avoid alcohol and drugs, and surround myself with loving, positive people who I can trust, connect with, and feel inspired by when I’m around them. However, the biggest way I take care of myself is through my self-talk and attitude, which I proactively choose every day. Charles R. Swindoll has written about this one thing, which is so crucial, more than once. He writes:
Words can never adequately convey the incredible impact of our attitude toward life. The longer I live the more convinced I become that life is 10 percent what happens to us and 90 percent how we respond to it.
I believe the single most significant decision I can make on a day-to-day basis is my choice of attitude. It is more important than my past, my education, my bankroll, my 
successes or failures, fame or pain, what other people think of me or say about me, my circumstances, or my position. Attitude keeps me going or cripples my progress. It alone fuels my fire or assaults my hope. When my attitudes are right, there’s no barrier too high, no valley too deep, no dream too extreme, no challenge too great for me.
Swindoll also maintains that “The pursuit of happiness is a matter of choice…it is a positive attitude we choose to express. It is not a gift delivered to our door each morning, nor does it come through the window. And it is certain that our circumstances are not the things that make us joyful. If we wait for them to get just right, we will never laugh again” (as cited in Coast, n.d.).
I wholeheartedly agree with Swindoll’s assertions and believe the research related to the budding field of positive psychology seems to only bolster his statements. Due to the impact one’s emotional well-being has on one’s physical health and life overall, I think this is the ultimate way one can care for oneself.
However, while I am caring for myself in many ways, I am guilty of occasionally failing to maintain balance between working on helping those in need, pursuing my education, and taking time for myself to both care for myself properly, as well as just relax. It’s needless to say that never having any downtime is not healthy for anyone and I am 
failing to take care of myself when I don’t allow for this in my life. This balance is the one area that I must continue to work on with regard to self-care and I am a work in progress. Each day, I get a little more skilled at finding that balance and I know that one day I will master that, too. In the meantime, I look to others that may know how to achieve such balance and learn from them as they part their wisdom on me in little doses. It is for this reason that I collect, if you will, mentors I admire in various ways. To model myself after the qualities I admire in them and hope to achieve in myself one day. This, too, could be considered caring for myself, I suppose.
With all things considered, I feel that I am right where I belong and that these challenges are helping me to become a better version of myself- the best me I can hope to be today, tomorrow, and going forward. I am grateful that there are so many wonderful opportunities to grow as a person on so many different levels here at my new school and in my new town, from the inspiring and intellectually brilliant professors who students can learn from both academically and personally to the supportive friends I have made so quickly here. While this adjustment period has presented some stress for me temporarily, it’s also just that- temporary. I’m not worried at all about how I will adjust and I know that this is part of the process in becoming the person I want to be one day. Therefore, I welcome these experiences with open arms and nothing short of excitement.
Works Cited
Coast, M. (n.d.). Quotes About Life. Retrieved October 18, 2013, from Live With Passion Now: http://www.livewithpassionnow.com/quotes-about-life/
Swindoll, C. R. (2009, January 20). The Value of a Positive Attitude. Retrieved October 17, 2013, from Insight: http://daily.insight.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=13123
Budding Into Fullness: From Broken Pieces to Masterpieces 