Last week I had the opportunity to talk to my brother, Patrick Howell COTA/L, on the phone. He works as a Pediatric Occupational Therapy Practitioner in Rochester, New York.
While talking about his job, Patrick reminded me that so many people have ignored the basic needs of self-care. He says “Self-care should be a crucial part of everyone’s routine.” He comments on how everyone he’s worked with has had some sort of struggle with self-image and their self-confidence due to lack of time to take care of themselves.
I bet everyone on a college campus can agree with this; how many times have you tried to change how you look or try to cover up your body? As an Occupational Therapy Practitioner, Patrick says that “No matter how you’re feeling, you can feel better about yourself. Establishing a set routine every morning will help aid in your self-image.”
He even goes on in our phone conversation to say that just the simple act of brushing your teeth could make you feel like a million bucks.
He suggests to just try dressing up for yourself, brushing your hair, moisturizing your face and body, or even just drinking water as apart of your daily self-care routine.
Getting comfortable with taking care of yourself and your own body can also help you confront your body or image insecurities. My brother says it’s important for his clients (and even us college students) to say to yourself that “This is my body in the here and now. This is who I am right now. How can I make myself better in this moment?”
An answer I have for that question is simply putting on some mascara or even a sweater that makes me comfortable and look nicer. It’s something as simple as a piece of clothing that could help you feel better about how you look right now and it’s a small step into the direction of self-care.
Self-care is a lot more simple than people think it is. Even taking a shower could be your form of self-care. Anything that you do to feel better counts as self-care. And, as stressed-out college students, we should focus on ourselves and our bodies.
Patrick wants to remind everyone that “You shouldn’t worry about how other people see you. Think: how do you feel right now?”