The Impact of Self-Care on Our Whole Being
Often when we think of self-care, our minds go to how we take care of our physical bodies. However, self-care as a spiritual discipline is so much deeper.
We cannot separate our body, soul, and spirit without causing discord in other areas of our lives.Â
Let me give you an example. In my 20’s, I fell down a wooden flight of stairs, my tailbone hitting each step as I bumped down (it was something you might see in a carton).Â
In more recent years, I took it upon myself to spray wasp nests in the eaves of our home and fell a short distance from a ladder rupturing discs in my back. I have managed those previous injuries with a stretching program for back pain care.Â
However, the last few weeks, I became lax about my exercises, putting other things first as my body grew tighter and tenser.
I was aware, I even felt it in my jaw until one morning I woke up with the familiar pain radiating across my low back.Â
Did this just affect my body? No it affected my mind, my thoughts were fuzzier. It affected how I cared for others in my family. It affected how I spent time with God.
And it was preventable if I had taken time to take care of myself.
Why Is Self Care Important for Single Parents?
Christians often shy away from this word, so I desire to be clear on the definition.Â
Self-awareness (like the awareness I knew I needed to stretch) is different from self-absorption.Â
Self-absorption is motivated solely by love of yourself while self-awareness is motivated by caring for yourself with the ultimate purpose of honoring God and serving your fellow human beings to the best of your ability.
Frederick Buechner is an writer/pastor who has a gift at wording thoughts so beautifully. He writes in his book Telling Secrets…
Love your neighbor as yourself is part of the great commandment. The other way to say it is, Love yourself as your neighbor. Love yourself not in some egocentric, self-serving sense but love yourself in the way you would love your friend in the sense of taking care of yourself, nourishing yourself, trying to understand, comfort, strengthen yourself.
Pay mind to your own life, your own health and wholeness, both for your own sake and ultimately for the sake of those you love too. Take care of yourself so you can take care of them. A bleeding heart is of no help to anybody if it bleeds to death.
So dear single parent, caring for yourself is vital to the functioning of your family and vital to serving God.
It is not easy to find the time, but it is possible!
For the next few weeks, we will focus on self care for the single parent. Today we will start with food!Â
Begin by Thanking God and Asking for Help
Would you spend a few minutes right now thanking God for the gift of your body? Read Psalm 139:13-18.
Even in all its imperfections, your body has carried you through, brought you this far. Ask Him for help to break patterns and make changes.Â
When we feel like our bodies are betraying us, sometimes it is due to emotions we are not processing or patterns we are stuck in.
It is often due to lack of sleep or what we are putting into our bodies.Â
Self-Care Equals Good Food
Rule Number One
Eat food in it's purest form, food God made as a gift for us. This is your starting point.
I know how difficult it is to get home from work and try to get a healthy meal on the table, sometimes before your family is off and running again.
Did I even mention helping with homework and going over school notes?
Resources To Get You Started
If you are new to healthy eating, take it slow and do some research. My friend introduced me to Christian Nutritionist.
On her website resource page, you can access her God’s Grocery Guide, a great resource to get you started.
Another good website to check out is Weston A. Price Foundation, also with a downloadable shopping list.
If you need to overhaul your whole family’s habits, start with The Dirt Cure, written by a full time working mom.
Rule Number Two
Preparation is key.
Lately, I have found that ordering groceries online saves me money because I can see how much I am spending and keeps me from impulse buys. If your life is busy, consider ordering online at least part of the time.
Don’t buy items just for the kids. If you have my will power, you will end up eating it. And quite honestly if it’s not good for you, it’s not good for your kids. You are worth it.Â
Experiment with what healthy eating style works for your body. My experience has been that a paleo diet works for me, but I believe everyone’s make-up is unique, and may benefit from different eating styles.
Pay attention to your reactions to foods. (If I eat white sugar, I wake up with a headache the next day.)
Rule Number Three
Learn to cook, but lighten your load with these tips.
Double recipes and freeze items like taco meat for another quick meal. Serve it with rice first and tortilla chips or oven nachos the next time.
Leftover roast for one meal can be frozen and made into a shepherd’s pie for another meal.
A favorite of our family’s lately is the jarred sauce from Maya Kaimal like or the Thai Kitchen paste that make meals in less than a half hour.
One dish meals like this with meat and veggies include make life and cleaning up easy.
Breakfast foods can make a healthy dinner, like egg tacos.
Root vegetables are your best friend – experiment with sweet potatoes, turnips, parsnips, and rutabagas. They have a long shelf life and are so reasonably priced. One of my favorite recipes is below.
One of my frustrations of healthy eating is the expense, and don’t expect to find coupons for healthy food.Â
Single parents on limited budgets are already feeling the strain.Â
My encouragement is to do your best, there is usually a better choice even if it is not the best choice.
Think of feeding your family as an investment.
You are investing in their long term health, feeding their brains for better mental clarity and giving the best start to their physical health.
Get to know your root veggies! Parsnips, turnips, rutabagas, beets, and sweet potatoes are all very reasonably priced.
If you are wondering what vegetable is available seasonally in your area, check out The Seasonal Food Guide.