Two years ago I suffered from a burn-out. It took me a lot of months to get completely over it and still I think “it” is still there… lurking around the corner.

One way to fight a burn-out is to make sure you love yourself just that little bit more. I know… that sounds selfish and just a little narcissistic, but believe me… it has got nothing to do with that!! Because let’s be honest… if you can’t love yourself, how the hell will you be able to find the energy to love others?

In today’s post I will give you some tips on how to love yourself a little bit more… read them… it might be worth it!

1.Plan some me-time

This really is important and I try to fit in some ‘me-time’ whenever I can. I’ve got a busy life… working fulltime, making sure the kids have all the attention they need, squeezing in some time with the hubbie, with friends and family, making sure the house looks ok and everybody has clean and preferably ironed clothes on their backs… you probably know all to well what I mean!

It’s so easy to forget yourself during everyday’s hustle and bustle, but a little bit of me-time can do the trick!

And that can be really simple you know… plan a trip to the library to browse through some books, take a long hot bath and make sure no one disturbs you, take a walk in the park, buy a magazine and go somewhere nice to have a coffee whilst you read your magazine, watch a sunset (or a sunrise if you have the courage to get up at the crack of dawn!), go for a run,…

If you find it difficult to do so, take your diary and literally plan it in in between your chores.

There are so many ways to fit in some time for yourself that even the busiest of persons can squeeze in 15 minutes every other day! Why don’t you start with it today! Go on… what are you waiting for… and don’t you dare feel guilty about it 😉

2.Plan some quality-time with the family

As opposed to the me-time, make sure to plan some quality time with your family as well. I’ve got 3 kids who are growing up so fast… they all have their own lives and hobbies so I find it important to regularly fit in some quality time with my kinds and husband.

We plan dinner on a Friday or Saturday night, followed by some board games. I really love those nights. And I know we should be able to do this without planning… but you know how it goes… time flies and everbody is so busy living their own lives…

These family nights give us the chance to be together as a family whereas most of the time we just happen to live in the same house. These family nights always give me heaps of energy and make me feel good about myself and loved.

3.Take care of your body and mind

Plenty of ways to do that…

• Read… that way you feed your mind!
• Sleep enough!
• Eat and drink healthy!
• Take some time off social media!
• Exercise!
• …

4.Find a way to release tension

This is quite an important one in my opinion and something that I really miss in my life at the moment! I used to go jogging, but the last 6 months or so I’ve been having a lot of backaches. I stopped my morning runs as they gave me too much pain, but I do miss them heaps! It was my way to release some tension.

Because I don’t know which exercises are ok for my back and which aren’t, I am now awaiting an appointment with a specialist to start exercising again… can’t wait!!

5.You get what you give

Treat people the way you want people to treat you! So make sure to be friendly, patient, honest at all times as that will repay itself big time 🙂

6.Appreciate yourself and what you’ve got

Don’t get stuck in negativism… appreciate yourself and what you’ve got. There will always be things that happen for some reason… but it’s up to you how you handle these things!

You can drown yourself in self-pity when things look dark and gloomy, but try to look on the bright side, try to look at things in a positive way, try to find a glimmer of hope in anything that happens… there are always people who are worse off than you I’m sure!

7. Take a look in the mirror…

It might help to take a long hard look at yourself… and be honest! Do some self-reflection, become aware of what’s been holding you back and write down what’s been bothering you.

It might help to have a good friend help you with this, or you might even want to seek specialist advice.

8. When you’re stuck… try something new!

Sick and tired of your daily/weekly/monthly routines? Perhaps it’s time to try something new! It doesn’t always have to be very drastic you know… perhaps it can help you to find a new hobby or you may want to change your morning routine by getting out of bed a bit earlier to have a morning walk. Be open for new things… try them out. Perhaps it’s not the right place and the right time, but it might just be?!

When I had my burn-out I took some time off at work to get my head together again. I really thought of applying for a new job. But when I was really honest with myself, I had to admit that I actually liked my job and colleagues so why would I have to change that? Instead of changing my job, I took on a hobby… I started blogging and it definitely helped me in my healing process to do something completely different. Something that I am responsible for, something of my own and something that I am actually quite proud of. It gives me a lot of satisfaction working on my blog and getting compliments about it. So for me that was the ‘something new’ I needed in my life at that moment!

 

When you apply these tips (and many more I’m sure!), you will feel good about yourself and your surroundings. You will give yourself permission to love yourself a little bit more and you’ll be amazed how that can influence your life and that of your loved ones!

Do you have any more tips? Feel free to share them as I’m always in search of some inspiration 🙂

Love, Kathleen