For the longest time throughout high school and most of my undergrad, I was convinced that self care was a scam. I was a grinder, and knew that if I had work to do, me taking precious time away from doing that work would only hurt me. Boy was I wrong.
I think that often, it is hard to connect how we feel physically and emotionally to the work that we do. It wasn't until my third year of college that I realized how much these things affected the quality of my work, and the quality of my life. I started waking up TO my alarm rather than pressing snooze. I began to actually eat breakfast, go on a run after class, finish all homework by 10PM and get to sleep before midnight. It was calling one person I loved a day, or having a conversation with one person a day to free my mind and unburden my heart. It was taking time every night to just write about how my day went and what I was grateful for and what I wanted for tomorrow. For me, it was sticking to a routine that really was self care. It was "sacrificing" my time to take care of my body and my mind that showed me how necessary those things are. In the classroom, I wonder how I can incorporate this freedom through routine with my students. Taking even 5 minutes at the beginning of class to allow my students to also practice self care, whether that is eating their breakfast, calling their mom, thinking about math, or just resting their brain, could I give them those first 5 minutes? I want to have movement in my math classroom, conversations with friends and peers, and also time for deep thinking. And then maybe the last 3 minutes as well to reflect, pause, and reset? Although this would take precious class time, I know that each day if I include these tings, my students will learn more and learn better. Routine, and the freedom found in it, is the way I take care of my mind and my body. It is simple, structured, and repetitive, but it works for me.