Kindness and Empathy Matter — But You Can Only Take Care of Yourself

Be kind, compassionate, and empathic — but don’t neglect taking care of yourself.

Photo by Cole Keister on Unsplash

Self-care is the only thing over which you have control.

Your health, wellness, and wellbeing belong to nobody but you. Ergo, you’re the only one who can care for them. Your health, wellness, and wellbeing are the core of all that you are.

The who, what, where, how, and why of you is directly tied to your health, wellness, and wellbeing. Any imbalance in your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health will challenge you.

It’s too easy to believe that you must only put others first. You come second. After you’ve cared for others, then, and only then, can you practice self-care.

But when you don’t take care of yourself — who can and will? That’s the paradox and frequent conundrum. Why? Because of the false narratives of selfishness.

Many of the examples you see of people putting themselves first are extreme. That’s because the news media loves to show the unkind, uncompassionate, and truly selfish who put themselves — and only themselves — first.

When the false narrative equates the general notion of self-care with putting yourself first…