Self-Care in a Crisis

These past few weeks, I have been feeling lost, sad, depressed, tired, angry, yet understanding. I graduated in 2019, and it’s hard to see most of my colleagues get job offers, moving to another state, and having fun. All I get are rejection letters, and it’s difficult. Of course, no one likes getting rejected. It makes you feel like you’re not good enough. I’ve been applying like crazy but nothing yet. Some people ghosted me, and others just denied me. I feel like I’m on the Bachelor where I’m the contestant vying for the star. Yes, I’m writing for a couple of publications, and it’s probably the best outlet for me. It’s the only way to express myself these days.

I haven’t been eating much due to stress and trying to be amazing at my social media skills, but I feel like I keep failing. Probably because I’m an Asian American woman and a Virgo, and we are perfectionists. I remember one of my favorite teachers telling me, “If you wait for perfection, you’ll be waiting forever.” She’s right. I’ve been working non-stop for 12 hours every day for a month or so. I do have set hours when I work, but I always seem to exceed it. So, I stopped, evaluated my schedule, and see what I can do to take care of myself. 

I was on a binge of doing meditation, yoga, listening to podcasts every single day. I stopped for a while because I slept at midnight, and it sucked all the energy out of me the next morning. I always told myself that as long as I’ve finished one major thing a day, that’s my accomplishment. But I need to do better, especially since my creative juices have not been working. 

There’s a lot of personal projects I was working on but forgot about for a while. I had a video in the making, and I attempted to write chapters for a short story. I haven’t taken care of myself for a while, and I need to stop and breathe. Here’s how I take care of myself. 

Make Drinks You Actually Enjoy 

Don’t try making your Youtuber’s favorite drink if you don’t actually like it. Drink something that you absolutely love and look forward to having. I used to wake up at 6 a.m, but since I’ve been sleeping in, the best I can do is wake up at 7 a.m. or 8 a.m. A lot of people adore making coffee in the morning just to get them energized. 

I have a different drink every morning, and I don’t like the same thing every day. Instead, I’ll either have hot water and honey, hot chocolate, or matcha. The only coffee I can drink is Cafe Sua Da, which is iced Vietnamese coffee. I tend to use a heavier hand on the condensed milk than coffee; that way, I won’t have a major headache! Plus, it’s so much more rich and creamy that way. 

Your Skin Is Thirsty 

Skincare is a big deal to me. It represents being kind and loving my skin, so I do it every day. If you don’t want to buy a whole bunch of products, that’s totally understandable. If you only have time for one product, I recommend a face mist. It’s soothing, moisturizing, and it’ll wake you up for the day!

Listening To Podcasts 

For podcasts, I have been listening to Dateline NBC. True crime is fascinating to me, but it’s tragic to hear people’s losses. I listen to hear what happened and how the investigation went down. I studied journalism, so I’m always paying attention to detail and what’s being said. A lot of the episodes range from 42 minutes to an hour and a half. I don’t tend to listen to the whole episode in one sitting. I’d rather listen to a bit each day or throughout the day. 

I enjoy listening to Before Breakfast too. They’re only approximately six or seven minutes long. They have topics such as setting goals within a range and create more and less clickbait. It’s very encouraging and inspiring. I listen to it when I first wake up so I can get ready for the day and have a great mindset.

Books, Books, Books!

Reading more is on my to-do list. I have a lot of self-help books, but I am branching out and reading stories and comics! I just finished Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda. It’s the source material of the movie, Love, Simon. The book and movie are both emotional. I’ve cried more during the film because I’m a visual person. The book made me angry and moving, and I’ve caught myself smiling so much that my cheeks hurt. Books tend not to have that much of an impact on me, so it’s great to read for self-care. Reading helps stimulate your mind, and it can help with creativity! 

TV Shows 

I’ve been watching 911 on Hulu, and I’ve cried during every single episode. It’s about first responders such as firefighters, police officers, and 911 dispatchers hearing people in danger and running towards them to get them to safety. I can only imagine these situations happening in reality, and it’s scary. It reminds me of why I enjoy helping other people. It’s bittersweet.

Get Out Of The House More 

Getting some fresh air is really important. If you’re like me, you’ve been cooped up in the house and haven’t gone outside of your house much. Some days, it’s really beautiful outside, so go out and breathe in the fresh air. Every time I’m outside, I smile. The wind or sun hitting my skin and being able to feel it is amazing. Sometimes, I’ll skateboard at the park or in my driveway. At least I’ll be working on balance! It’s also a great workout! 

Snacks

Eat snacks you enjoy! Treat yourself with snacks you love eating! Go easy on the chips, though. If you’re like me, you’ll buy four bags of chips and finish them within a month. One bag of chips will do. If you’re not into chips, get your favorite snacks, and share them with someone!

If I’m not getting chips, then I’m getting Pocky! If you don’t know what Pocky is, it’s basically a long biscuit stick with different flavors, and it’s from Japan. Some flavors include chocolate, almond, and matcha. My favorite is the matcha so far, so I buy it in bulk at my nearest Asia Town. I eat one pack per day just to restrain myself from eating all of it in one day.

Writing Letters

I don’t enjoy talking to people on the phone or FaceTime them when I’m sad or depressed. Instead, I write poems and letters. Some of my poems can be very depressing and suicidal, but I feel much better after it’s been written. I’ve always thought the pages were my best friend. Only it knows the secrets I keep and will listen to me without judging me. If you don’t want to write, you might find it beneficial to talk to your friend, stuffed animal, or a family member! Sometimes, I’ll talk to the wind like someone’s there just to get it off my chest. It’s like I’m addressing it to someone, but I’m not. It also helps me communicate better, so I’m prepared to talk to people. 

I could do self-care rituals the way I’ve seen it on Youtube, lighting a candle, and using an essential oil diffuser, but I tend to forget. I’ll do that once in a while, but personally, it’s not practical for me to do that every day. Do something for yourself that you’ll remember to do. Love it, enjoy it, and work through it. I always think, “I’m never getting through this. I just want to give up.” The hard part is picking yourself back up and getting through it. Life isn’t easy, and it shouldn’t be. Work hard now, and get rewarded later. But first, in order to work hard, you need to take care of yourself and your mind before you work. Set hours and stick to them. I need to remember to honor my hours too. We got this!