World of Wellbeing is a vodcast series featuring Ami Charlize and and Radio 1’s Dr Radha. In this episode, Ami and Radha chat about the importance and benefits of self care. Dr Radha tells us about how our relationships with other people can have a big impact on how we feel and Ami shares her self care tips.
Ami: I think it's really important for my mental health, just because it gives me that kind of energy to like reset, glow up.
Hey guys.
I'm Ami Charlize.
Dr Radha: And I’m Dr Radha.
Ami: Welcome to World of Wellbeing from BBC Bitesize, where we talk about how to look after yourself and your mind. So today, what are we chatting about?
Dr Radha: So today we're talking about self-care.
So Ami, I want to know, have you ever taken time for a bit of self-care? And also, what does that actually mean to you?
Ami: I'm actually really into my self-care, so I feel like this is a great ep, because yeah, I absolutely love doing self-care nights, like I try to do one at least once a week, and I've been doing that since before lockdown now, so very, very long.
Dr Radha: Amazing.
Ami: I think it's really important for my mental health just because it gives me that kind of energy to like reset, glow up, have a bit of fun, you know, so, I think it's really important.
Dr Radha: Yeah. I'm a massive fan of baths.
Ami: Same. That's one of the things that I love.
I love a bath. All my friends hate baths and I'm like, ‘no, I love them!’
Dr Radha: Oh, really?
Ami: Literally.
Dr Radha: Yeah, so it can be like simple things like that, like having a bath. I mean, I love going out in my garden or like listening to my music. That's kind of one of the things that I do to kind of make myself feel better. But also it's really helpful to think about what actually, what self-care is. So self-care is like a really broad term for anything that's good for our minds and bodies, and it can be something really simple, like going for a walk, listening to music, but it's really important to kind of do it regularly, to make it kind of meaningful for you, because it looks different for every single one of us.
Ami: Definitely.
Dr Radha: I think it's just very, very important for everyone to make sure that they're kind of incorporating this into their routine.
Ami: I think it's nicest when it's just you.
Dr Radha: Yeah, and I suppose it gives us a bit of space when everything gets a bitoverwhelming and the world. seems a little bit too much, we can just step back, we can put ourselves first, which sometimes we don't always do. Yeah.
Ami: Yeah.
And like you were saying, kind of have a bit of rest and recovery, so we can get back out there and be full of energy and be ourselves.
Dr Radha: Definitely.
So when you do your sort of self-care, how do you feel after that?
Ami: I think I just feel really like refreshed and ready, because I normally do it on a Sunday, so it kind of gets me ready for the next week. And I feel like it's just like a good, fresh beginning. Normally I'd wash my hair. I'd like, you know, put a hair mask in, I’d get in the bath, shave my legs, like just make myself feel a little bit better and just like a really, really clean start for the week. Why do you think it’s so important?
Dr Radha: When you think about the term self-care, if you really think about what it means, it just means caring for yourself, which kind of like we don't always think about.
Ami: So yeah, it kind of helps us, I suppose, prioritise what we need, which is super important. Yeah, and also like, it doesn't have to be pricey. We can literally have self-care at home for free. Do you know what I mean?
Dr Radha: I love that.
And also it can be things, I mean, sometimes we think of it as doing our hobbies or like getting our nails painted, which is great, but it can be something even sort of simpler than that, it can be saying no to someoneif they want you to go out with them and you're just really tired, or it can be just getting a bit more sleep, for example. So it doesn't… or just been kinder to yourself. It doesn't have to be complex and it doesn't have to be expensive.
Ami: So are there different types of self-care?
Dr Radha: Yeah, so there are three kind of different areas. So there's like physical,emotional and social. So if you're talking about physical, you have to getreally honest with yourself. Are you getting enough sleep? Are you eating well? Are you looking after yourself? Are you exercising? How are you feeling in your body? And if you're not getting enough of those or the answer is no to some of those, then actually, what can you change about that?
Ami: So I absolutely love going to the gym and also just boxing. It's really helped me like get, you know, stress off my back. And I feel like when I have rubbish weeks, I just go to boxing and let all my anger out. So I think it's a really, really good way of self-care. Obviously for the physical side.
Dr Radha: It really is. And actually that links into kind of emotional self-care. So, you know, we all experience lots of different emotions, sadness, anger, and actually how do we kind of process those?
How do we kind of allow those to kind of move through us, so we're not kind of overwhelmed by them? Because if we don't, then they tend to build up. So that might be like getting active and exercising, but it also might be getting creative, so baking a cake or you know, writing a story or like creating some music. Whatever I suppose, takes your mind away from your worries and helps you process your emotions, I think is really helpful.
Dr Radha: Do you know, that's funny you say that because I absolutely love listening to music.
Ami: Yeah.
Walking my dog whilst just listening to music. There's nothing better than that. I also I just pretend I'm in a music video. It's great.
Dr Radha: Yeah, I do that.
Ami: I do it all the time. I thought it was just me. I’ll be in my mirror and I'll be like, ‘yeah!’ I absolutely love it.
But I find that very interesting because I didn't really think there was three.
Dr Radha: Yeah, well the last one is kind of like social stuff.
So we think about our relationships as really important for our mental health and how we feel, and we don't often think about this, but like, let's say you've had a fall out with your best friend. It kind of makes you feel quite sick inside, and it just makes you feel just not quite right.
So again, self-care on the social side of things can be about actually taking steps to resolve that and making that better as well.
Ami: I think that's really inspirational because for me, seeing my friends is such a big factor. Like my mum always says, ‘you need a day off.’ So I think it's really nice that like that is actually part of self-care.
So next time she says that to me, I'll be like, ‘self-care, mum.’ I’ve got to see my friends. But no, I love that and very time I do see my friends, I think it's just like a weight off my shoulders. Yeah. You can just be yourself, be fun, you know, and be free.
Dr Radha: Absolutely and I think sometimes we forget about the importance of actually seeing someone face to face when you see someone's eyes, you see their smile, you know, you might get a hug from them. Then actually, that's really important as well because sometimes we can get lonely.
Ami: Definitely.
Dr Radha: And talking about of socials and social media, again, something we can do in terms of self-care is having a bit of a detox from that. So unfollowing accounts or people that don't make you feel particularly good, and also just just turning your phone off or just completely not looking at social media for a while can actually really help us as well when it comes to self-care.
Ami: And unfollowing people is so satisfying.
Dr Radha: Yeah.
Ami: I'm not gonna lie. So I agree with that completely. I always turn my socials off if I'm having my me time.
Dr Radha: Yeah, absolutely. I think it's great.
Ami: So what can I actually do now to improve my self-care?
Dr Radha: So you're talking about kind of once a week, your self-care Sunday, but actually there are things we can do every single day. We all have like tasks, but in terms of self-care, can you schedule in some me time for yourself today?
Ami: Yeah, I feel like I could do that.
Dr Radha: Yeah, you can do?
Shall we have a look? What can I do today? So it might be a hobby it might be mindfulness, just like anything that makes you feel, I suppose, you’ve got some space from life.
Ami: I might actually just give myself a nice facial tonight.
Dr Radha: That sounds perfect.
Ami: I haven’t gave one in a while, so I'll put that in my diary.
Dr Radha: I love that.
Ami: A little facial for tonight at about 8pm.
Dr Radha: I love that. 8pm facial.
Ami: And guys, if you're listening to this or watching it and you're thinking, ‘oh yeah, Ami’s just done it,’ you should also do it too. So if you want to get involved, make sure to do something tonight for your self-care, because we all need self-care in our lives and I think it's a really, really good idea.
Thanks so much for being with us,
Head to Bitesize Study Support to watch more episodes or search World of Wellbeing on BBC Sounds to listen now.
Bye!
Dr Radha: Self-care can only go so far, sometimes you need a bit of support. If you are feeling overwhelmed, even if you are taking time out for yourself, then talk to someone you trust, that might be a parent, a teacher, or a carer, or even another friend.
What is self care and why is it important?
When was the last time you took some space out of your diary and did a little bit of ‘self care’?
You may think you’re too busy for this and don’t have enough time or you might think it’s all about bubble baths and face masks. But that isn’t so.
You might have heard a lot of people talk about self care and you might have seen a lot of people sharing pics of what their ‘self care’ routines look like, but have you ever thought about yours, what you do and why it matters?
Why does self care matter?
It’s important to work out what ‘self care’ actually means to you because we’re all different. In basic terms, it’s about caring for yourself. When we look after ourselves, we are more resilient to challenges in life when things get tough, we feel better and have better physical and mental health, we can look after our friends and family better when they need us, and most importantly, we give ourselves the message that we are important too, that we matter and that we deserve looking after.
What exactly is self care?
Self care is all about what makes you feel better. It can be whatever makes you feel good and what is good for our minds and bodies. It might be listening to music, going for a walk, turning your phone off so you have some time for yourself, or choosing to stay in and have an early night when you’re tired.
How to notice when we need self care
If we neglect ourselves or the need to care for ourselves, we can often feel stressed and overwhelmed. We might feel tired or worried a lot because we are not taking time out. We might not be sleeping enough or we might not have had space to see our friends much because we are feeling stressed. We might also feel like we find it harder to cope when things get tough. These are all good signs to look out for and notice so that we can change our habits and prioritise ourselves again.
What does good self care look like?
The good news is that there are three main types of self care for you to choose from and some questions you can easily ask yourself in each to help you notice which area you may not be focusing on enough. Self-care is yours to create and design because you are unique and special.
Physical – it can be really helpful to ask yourself a few questions about how much you’re looking after yourself physically. Are you getting enough sleep? Are you moving your body and exercising? Are you eating regularly and healthily?
Emotional – we all experience lots of different emotions every single day in response to what happens, but also how we feel and think. We need to find ways to express those emotions and to let them out and let them pass through. Are you talking to people who care about what is on your mind and how you feel? Are you using hobbies that allow you to have space from your mind like baking, painting, writing or creating some music?
Social – healthy relationships are one of the safety nets when it comes to our mental and emotional health, so it’s important to make sure we’re seeing our friends regularly and talking to them about what really matters and being ourselves in front of them. However, it’s also important on the other side of things to make sure we're having time away and time to ourselves as well so we can connect with who we really are.
How do we self care?
It’s helpful to make self-care part of your daily routine and easy and achievable, otherwise it can feel like it is causing you stress. The simpler the strategy for self-care, the better, and there are so many ways to feel good for free too – that might be getting out in nature, or listening to music, or going for a walk and a chat with a friend.
We also need to make sure that self care is ‘non-negotiable’ so we need to think about scheduling it into our diaries and make plans for self-care. What are the three activities that you absolutely need to do in order to feel like you are looking after yourself? Make sure you do these every week and stick to this no matter what. Having some time away from social media, if you are old enough to be on it, can also be great for our mental health and give us time for self-care.
You matter and caring for yourself matters too, so put some time, energy and space into designing your own bespoke ‘self-care’ package.
Self-care can only go so far – sometimes you need a bit of support. If you are feeling overwhelmed, even if you are taking time out for yourself, then talk to someone you trust, that might be a parent, a teacher, or a carer, or even another friend.
More World of Wellbeing
What is friendship? video
Ami Charlize and Radio 1’s Dr Radha talk friendship fall-outs and growing apart.
How much sleep do you need? video
Ami Charlize and Radio 1’s Dr Radha give some guidance on how exercise and being active can help boost your mood.
How to be more confident
Ami Charlize and Radio 1’s Dr Radha talk affirmations, body confidence and bullying.
World of Wellbeing on BBC Sounds
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If you need support
You should always tell someone about the things you’re worried about. You can tell a friend, parent, guardian, teacher or another trusted adult. If you're struggling with your mental health, going to your GP can be a good place to start to find help. Your GP can let you know what support is available to you, suggest different types of treatment and offer regular check-ups to see how you’re doing.
If you’re in need of in-the-moment support you can contact Childline, where you can speak to a counsellor. Their lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
There are more links to helpful organisations on BBC Action Line.
