This is how you know that your lack of personal care is hurting you and what you need to start doing instead.

Many of us don’t prioritize our self-care. We make time for everything else in our lives — family, work, career, business business, and other people. But we ignore to take care of themselves.

Being able to consciously promote your own physical, mental, and emotional well-being is critical not just to achieve your goals, but to live a happy and successful life.

And you’re not going to do that if you break down for failing to look after yourself. You won’t be able to give yourself and your time to all those things that you think are super important to you now if you have nothing left to give in the first place.

So, how do you know that neglecting to attend to yourself is beginning to take its toll on your health and wellbeing?

Read also: 10 qualities of people with amazing presence

You’re frequently feeling stressed out

It’s not easy to keep up with all the responsibilities that we have to face everyday, whether it’s work, family, relationships, etc. We’re constantly exposed to stressors.

And because of how damaging chronic stress can be to our body and mental health, it’s important that we’re taking our personal care seriously.

When you’re stressed out, your body and brain no longer work to their full capacity. You not only feel physically exhausted, your thinking, memory, focus and decision making take a hit too. Ultimately, this pushes you are productivity down further.

So, talking care of yourself is key to having the physical and psychological resources you need to successfully go through your daily responsibilities and reap the full benefits of your stress relief efforts.

What you need to do

To de-stress, take time to nurture yourself and your body without interruption. If possible, a massage, a hot bath, or another form of pampering can revitalizes you inside and out.

But more substantially, healthier lifestyle choices are important too. Eat healthy diet, get regular exercise, and enough sleep.

You feel sleepy all the time

Getting sufficient amount of sleep on a regular basis is probably the most effective way to help your mind and body relax and recover from your day.

According to studies, you need at least 7–8 hours of sleep every day. This helps your body restore its hormonal balance and repairs itself.

But if you’re in the habit of restricting your sleep, unless there’s an underlying medical condition, it’s going to reflect in many ways on your body, including making you feel sleepy during the day.

So, while feeling sleepy may be normal, it’s important to point out that it can also be the result of putting your body through excessive stress and ignoring to properly care for yourself.

What you need to do

Avoid caffeine (coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks, etc.) for 8 to 10 hours before bedtime.
Revise your habits to support sleep such as not staying up to watch TV when it’s sleep time.
Make sleep a priority and follow a consistent sleep routine

You’re having major brain fog

Living with brain fog is no easy feat. It affects everything you do throughout the day — not to mention your interactions with other people.

Imagine having difficulties trying to remember the name of a colleague at the office or where you left an important file just a few minutes ago.

So, brain is simply what happens when you start feeling mentally sluggish and fuzzy. It affects your ability to focus, make it difficult for you to recall things, or pay attention to what’s going on around you. You just feel out of sorts.

Most of the times, an underlying cause of it is lack of proper self-care.

When you overwork yourself, have little or no time for rest, and you hardly get enough sleep, all those stress will boomerange and leave your mind heavily foggy.

What you need to do

Follow a healthier lifestyle of eating iet and avoid alcohol and drugs which impair your sensesb and adversely affect your brain.
Try to get some extra rest whenever you can (even if it’s a short break).
Take extra time to organize your schedule or rework your to-do list so that you’re prioritizing your most important tasks.
Get more physically active to improve your thinking, concentration, and attention.

Your sex drive is low

Low sex drive or loss of libido is a common problem that affects about 30% of men and 40% of women at some point in their lives.

When people experience loss of libido, their sexual desires reduce or they lose interest in sexual activities.

While this can sometimes be due to other health issues, it’s also linked to long work hours, lack of sleep, depleted energy levels, and alcohol.

For example, a recent study links sleep restriction with 10–15% decrease in testosterone levels, especially between 2:00 pm and 10:00 pm the next day.

Testosterone is the male hormone responsible for building for stimulating sperm production and plays a major role in sex drive.

So, if you notice your sex drive suddenly dropping, you need to look at your lifestyle and how it may be engineering the situation.

What you need to do

Take some time off work to take care of yourself, relax and get back to groove.
Exercise regularly
Eat nutritious diet
Work to improve your relationship

Your skin is super dry

Dry and itchy skin can occur at any age, but if you’re above 50 years old, you need to take extra care to prevent it.

The reason being that the glands that make oil for the skin tend to become smaller and make less oil as we age.

Aging may contribute to the cause of dry skin, but neglecting to take care of yourself can also be a major culprit.

Dermatitis neglecta is the inflammatory skin condition that results when you ignore your skin hygiene.

What you need to do

Researchers says low-fat diet can lead to dry skin. So, eating food with a bit more fat content such as walnut, olives, and so on.
Use moisturizers that are compatible with your skin type.

You’re easily getting sick

A strong immune system is what helps your body fight off harmful substances and germs that enter the body, for instance through the skin, to prevent you from falling ill.

If it wasn’t for your immune system, you will pick up every every cold, flu, and virus that goes around your environment.

Unfortunately, lifestyle, among others, is one of several factors that can weaken your immune system and make you vulnerable to incessant disease attacks and sickness.

What you need to do

Choose a healthy lifestyle that prioritizes your overall wellbeing such eating healthy foods, not smoking, good exercise regimen, get adequate sleep and take time to rest.

Read also: 10 habits to become more productive in life

You’re dependent on caffeine

Ideally, you only need to drink less than four cups of coffee per day. But if you’re fond of guzzling too much coffee like nobody’s business, be assured that it will not bode well for your health.

Most people rely on coffee to get through the day. The reason is coffee contains caffeine that boosts energy, make you feel less tired, increase energy levels, and improve your brain function, including your mood.

However, if you find that you need to drink a massive amount of caffeine to be able to function and get through the day, it’s probably you’re neglecting your personal care.

What you need to do

Take care of yourself so that you don’t have to rely on caffeine to stimulate yourself.
It is recommended that you don’t drink coffee 6 hours before bed so that it doesn’t disturb your sleep and your body can have time to recover.
Drinking more water will fight fatigue and improve mood and energy levels.
Eat more foods with Vitamin C, iron, magnesium, zinc, fiber, and the B complex vitamins.
Final Thought

If you want to feel great, stay healthy and productive, engaging in conscious personal care is essential.

This doesn’t necessarily mean you have to spend tones of money on skin care products or dine at 5-star restaurants.

It’s simply about incorporating lifestyle habits that prioritize your physical, mental, and emotional health at all times.

CONTRIBUTED BY Victor Mong

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