Prioritizing self-care for health and well-being

A core mission of the social worker is to restore and rebuild relationships within the framework of client empowerment. This process demands a wide range of skills in addition to individual case management, such as client advocacy, resource mobilization and community development. Increasing efforts to meet demands often leads to a state of physical and emotional depletion, which may result in long-term clinical depression. As an act of self-preservation in a demanding profession that prioritizes the needs of others, self-care is critical to personal and professional well-being.

Self-care is typically viewed as “an individual’s ability to look after him- or herself through self-awareness, self-monitoring and self-reliance in order to achieve, preserve and foster optimal health and well-being.” Self-care sees individuals as active agents in managing their own health and well-being, rather than as passive recipients. It requires intentional steps and deliberate choices to reduce the effects of physical and emotional stressors and live a more balanced life. Effective self-care involves a holistic integration of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. It does not require the formal health care system but does not preclude it either.

Self-care is hard work in that it demands a commitment to care for ourselves and others, and requires looking inwards to discover our authentic self. Knowing ourselves means identifying our strengths as well as the sources of our dysfunction, and then acknowledging them as a part of who we are. Therefore, self-care is not static or isolating; it evolves to meet changing needs and fosters connection with the self and others. Common self-care strategies include setting personal and professional boundaries, establishing healthy habits, cultivating awareness of the present moment, developing self-compassion in difficult times and seeking support as needed.

Entering into my third year at a social work organization in Seoul, I began to experience a significant decrease in morale and low job satisfaction. This internal change soon lent itself to a negative attitude toward my clients, often manifested by snappy rejoinders to their questions, as well as self-sabotaging cynicism. My jokes were often offensive and oppressive to some. Fearful of what I was becoming, I frantically looked for self-care routines that would help me restore joy in serving and tried to weave them into my everyday life, but all my attempts were unsuccessful. This was largely because my self-care occurred sporadically and in a private setting without internal or external work.

My weekly self-care routines had centered on self-imposed isolation accompanied by occasional self-pampering to cope with the harried reality of my professional life. This strategy involved unplugging all phones, pulling down the shades, lying on a couch for hours with the same music filling my apartment and rewarding myself with ice cream for surviving the week. My patchy self-care behaviors were ineffective and even exacerbated my pre-existing counterbalance. Leaving the agency seemed to be the only option to reorient myself and prevent me from hurting my clients. A year-long break from work allowed me to see that practicing sustainable and effective self-care routines requires time and effort on my part, along with a strong support network. Regular visits with supervisors would enable me to get through difficult times.

Much to my delight, in 2010 when I returned to school to study clinical social work, self-care was a new buzzword alongside trauma-informed practice and research. Improving individual and community well-being had gained wider recognition in the wake of traumatic events, such as man-made and natural disasters. Self-care was incorporated into the curriculum, encouraging students to discuss the benefits of self-care interventions and to practice specific techniques under the guidance of seasoned clinical professors (i.e., engaging in meditative breathing, centering ourselves in gratitude and using self-affirmation). Acknowledging that self-care requires discipline, we were also reminded that our own good health is at the core of our effectiveness as those who help others. With further education and training, my understanding of self-care had become sharper and clearer, and I began to integrate different parts of myself into regular self-care.

Everyone experiences various stressors that affect their health and well-being. Effective self-care is an essential coping mechanism that replenishes and sustains our body and mind, and makes us more resilient in the face of life’s challenges. Additionally, it anchors us with positive perspectives that contribute to our well-being. As this year ends and many of us set our goals for the coming year, I encourage you to include the discipline of self-care into all dimensions of your life in order to experience the benefits that you will receive.

Ma Kyung-hee (kyungheem@daum.net) is an editor and researcher specializing in mental health.