Selfishness usually gets a bad rap but here are
six ways it could be a healthy thing!
In a world that sometimes seems ready to spin off its axis, with everyone traveling at warp speed, excelling in multi-tasking, and working a 60-hour work week, self-care is often put at the end of the to-do list. Sure you might have a smoothie with your multi-vitamin for breakfast, and eat a salad for lunch, or maybe even sneak in an early morning run a few times a week, and is that doing all you need to maintain health and sobriety?
Before a flight takes off, airline attendants instruct, “If the cabin loses pressure, oxygen masks will fall. Take care of your oxygen needs before assisting someone else.” Great advice when flying and also great advice for living. Learn to take care of yourself first. It is not selfish; it is taking the opportunity to respect and maintain your overall health so that you can be your best, for yourself and ultimately for others as well.
Maintaining health is more than just eating your fruits and veggies and exercising. Maintaining health is including healthy fun in your life. A life of sobriety shouldn’t be boring. Spend some time thinking about things that you enjoy, or that you used to do that brought you joy. How long has it been since you did some of this stuff?
Here are some possibilities that might be on your list, and expand it,
make it a list that works for you.
1. Play sports. So what if you are not going to make the pros? Include things that you enjoyed or learn something that you have always wanted to. Start playing golf again, or sign up for tennis lessons. Begin training for your first (or first in a while) 5K, play softball, join a bowling league.
2. Find time to allow your mind to quiet. A meditative mind is a peaceful 
mind, knowing meditation doesn’t have to be sitting crossed legs in a Lotus position. Take some time to explore when you feel most calm. Is it when you are walking in a park, or fishing, or getting a massage, or a pedicure? After you decide what works best for you, include it in your schedule regularly– make time for you.
3. Take some time each day to turn off all the distractions. Try a bit of time with the television off, no music playing, no games on the computer or phone. Get comfortable with periods of silence. Start with just perhaps a half-hour, who knows you might begin to like it and decide to go longer. Become comfortable with the sound of silence.
4. Reconnect with an old friend who is supportive of your sobriety, someone with whom you truly enjoy spending time. Perhaps that person is someone who is joyful or silly or someone who recognizes the best part of you. Bring healthy people back into your world. Don’t isolate.
5. Spend at least 15 or 20 minutes each day reading a book that inspires you to live your best life. Keep it on your bedside table to read at night, or tuck it in your briefcase and read for a few minutes on your lunch break. Make it a part of your daily routine.
6. Learn something new. Think of something that fascinates you, something that you would like to learn to do, or do better. Painting, horseback riding, glassblowing, scuba diving, yoga. The options are endless. Explore them!
By incorporating the list that works for you into your life, you can discover that life with sobriety is fun. Healthy selfishness won’t make you a bad person; it will give you a more joyful person living a beautiful life. Do it!
If you or a loved one are struggling with addiction call us at 833.551.2356 for more information about how
Gulf Breeze Recovery could help you or your loved ones today.
