Latest / Dr. Derek H. Suite MD - The SuiteSpot / From Barriers to BreakThroughs 6/7: It's Ok to Lookout for #1--That's You. #SelfCareSaturday.

Transcript

From Barriers to BreakThroughs 6/7: It's Ok to Lookout for #1--That's You. #SelfCareSaturday. · Dr. Derek H. Suite MD - The SuiteSpot

• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Ah, welcome back.
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Welcome back to the Sweet Spot.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Friends, this is Self-Care Saturday and I'm Dr Derek Sweet.
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: For those of you who don't know me, I'm a board-certified psychiatrist and I love working with high performance, I enjoy working with sports psychiatry and, most of all, I enjoy helping anyone live the life they love.
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: So today, on Self-Care Saturday, after a week of making moves, taking action, winning it all, trusting yourself and finishing strong on Friday, as we did, it's time to give yourself some good old love.
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: But why is it that self-care sometimes feels so difficult?
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: Why do we feel guilty for taking a break, for throwing some love back on us, for putting ourselves first?
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: Well, one reason, according to social science, is the trap of social comparison.
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: You see, we live in a world that often glorifies busyness and productivity.
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: We see others constantly on the go achieving and doing, and we feel like we should be doing the same at the same speed.
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: And this fast moving pace I'm coming to you from New York, the city that never sleeps.
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: That's our motto.
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: It creates a pressure to always be on, to never slow down.
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: And even when our minds and our bodies are screaming for a break, our cell phones won't stop pinging or ringing or reminding us or sending notifications.
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: Even if we have the notifications silenced, we still hear the vibrations or see the light flicker.
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: It's amazing how tuned in we are to staying busy.
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: And on top of that social comparison trap we also have the people-pleasing trap.
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: You see, many of us are conditioned to prioritize the needs of others above our own.
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: We say yes to every request, we overextend ourselves, we pack in our calendars, we end up feeling so depleted and so resentful.
• 2:34
  Speaker 1: You ever been in a situation where you're like why did I say yes to that meeting?
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: Why did I say yes to that lunch?
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: It's like we've forgotten how to say no or to set healthy boundaries.
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: We feel guilty or bad if we do it.
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: But here's the truth, my friend Self-care it's not selfish, it's essential.
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: Remember, on the airplanes they always tell us you got to put the oxygen mask on you first before you can help anybody else.
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: But we do the reverse right.
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: We're putting the oxygen mask on everything that moves around us while we're gasping for air.
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: And the old saying you can't pour from an empty cup.
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: No matter how you try, turn it upside down, if it's empty it's not pouring much of anything out.
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: So let's reframe self-care as strategic rejuvenation.
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: Sometimes we need to change the word Because when you say self-care, it sounds so soft to people.
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: So in the athletic world, I work with a lot of athletes and very hardcore individuals that have to keep it moving.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: So I use strategic rejuvenation because it sounds hard and it sounds like really active, but it's basically a form of self-care.
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: So strategic rejuvenation is I want you to think of it as like an investment in your well-being, your own productivity, your own recovery and overall happiness.
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: It's not a luxury, it's a necessity, and it's not just about feeling good.
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: That's not what self-care is.
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: It's about being healthy.
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: When you use strategic rejuvenation or self-care, you're actually reducing stress hormones in the body, like cortisol, and when you have lower cortisol, you can lower your blood pressure, your heart rate, you can improve your sleep, you can boost your immune system, and that translates to better cardiac outcomes.
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: You can boost your immune system and that translates to better cardiac outcomes and the ability to resist diseases, including things like cancer.
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: Now, I'm not saying that these are the cures, but they do help reduce risk.
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: Self-care can reduce your risk of developing lots of stress-related conditions.
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: It's a powerful way to take care of your physical and mental well-being.
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: Okay.
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: So how do we prioritize self-care?
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: How do we do that?
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: Well, first you've got to learn something that I had to teach myself and that you should, too, learn to say no, yeah.
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: Learn to say no and learn that no is a complete sentence.
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: You don't always have to give an explanation as to why, if the answer is no, it's no.
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: No is one of those things where, if you put a period after it, like no, it's a sentence, you don't need to justify, you don't need to explain, you don't need to pontificate.
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: I'm thinking of my mom right now, you know.
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: I'm thinking of how, when she tells me no oh boy, it's no you don't ask any questions.
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: All right, mom, I hope you're not listening, all right?
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: So start setting healthy boundaries.
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: That's what I'm talking about.
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: Start setting a really healthy boundary for yourself, so that you can get to self-care, protect your time, protect your energy.
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: And remember, when you say no to something, what you're really doing is saying yes to something else.
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: Say yes to yourself today by saying no to something else.
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: That's the challenge for today.
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: Do something just for you, my friend, something that brings you joy, something that fills your cup.
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: Something that fills your cup.
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: Maybe it's time to read that book.
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: Take the bubble bath, go for the walk in nature, spend time with somebody you haven't seen in a long time, write a letter, whatever it is, I don't know.
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: Whatever it is that you know you need to be doing, make it a priority, because you deserve it and because it brings you joy.
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: And remember Anne Lamott's quote.
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: I've said it before in previous Sweet Spots almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.
• 7:19
  Speaker 1: So unplug, recharge and give yourself the gift of self-care today, my friend, and that's it.
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: That's your sweet spot for Self-Care Saturday.
• 7:31
  Speaker 1: I'm Dr Sweet.
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: I invite you to go, take care of yourself, and I'll see you back here tomorrow for Slow Down Sunday.
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: Until then, keep it real, keep it moving and keep it sweet.
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: All right, meet me on Instagram, meet me on Twitter, meet me on LinkedIn and on YouTube.
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: Okay, all right.
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: Peace and blessings.