Growing up in a dysfunctional family caused me to adopt some incredibly damaging codependent beliefs about myself including the lie that my well-being does not matter, only the well-being of others matters.
Fortunately, God has spent almost a decade teaching me that since I can only give to others from what I have within myself, it is not selfish but actually wise to take great care of myself before I care for others.
- Before I care for my toddler.
- Before I care for my husband.
- Before I care for my house.
- Before I care for my friends.
- Before I care for my work.
- Before I care for my ministry.
- Before I care for my neighbors.
Before anything or anyone else, I must care for myself.
My Me-Time Menu
The only way I’ve figured out how to do this is to implement daily and weekly Me-Time where I pick from a running menu of activities that have refreshed me in the past. The idea is that even when I’m too tired to think, I can look at it and easily pick something that resonates in my heart. Here are my favorite activities (and some places in central Maryland where I’ve enjoyed them before.)
- Get a Chinese acupressure massage; the kind at the mall, where you walk-in and keep your clothes on (Natural Relaxation)
- Enjoy a favorite healthy meal at a favorite restaurant (Outback Steakhouse, Sushi Sono)
- Get a relaxing mani-pedi (Blue Ocean Nails & Spa)
- Get a luxurious facial with lots of extraction and exfoliation at a spa (Turf Valley Spa & Resort)
- Lazily strolling through a designer furniture store or home wares store (Arhaus, Container Store, Williams Sonoma)
- Enjoy a good book at a beautiful outdoor location (Spiritual Intelligence, Encounters, Living from the Heart Jesus Gave You, Wild at Heart)
- Spend time two-way-journaling or vision-boarding with God, preferably at a wonderful little coffee shop (Cafe June, Nordstrom Espresso Bar, Panera Bread)
- Buy something that makes me feel beautiful, like a flowery dress or a pretty ring (Pandora, Brighton, Soft Surroundings)
- Listen to my Fun Music Playlist and sing it at the top of my lungs while dancing (at home or on a walk, sometimes while shopping at the grocery store)
- Phone-a-friend and have a leisurely chat, preferably over video chat; if no one is available, send Marco Polos
- Go for a walk near a body of water, preferably with a dog (if I have one available)
- Hang out by myself at the pool, lake, or beach (Delaware Beaches)
- Order photos for printing to scrapbook or update our family albums (Shutterfly for prints, Hobby Lobby for scrapbooking)
- Garden, garden, garden using organic soil, mulch, plants, and seeds (GrowJoy Plants, David’s Natural Market, Burpee seeds)
- Go on a REAL horseback ride (NOT on a boring trail ride)
- Finish a household project I really want finished, preferably involving baby stuff (like rotating out our Lovevery Play Kits)
- Go antiquing (Antique Depot)
- Scroll through our family Google Photos albums to remember our favorite memories in detail
- Read through my old two-way-journals to remember how God fulfilled prophecies and promises to me
- Listen to an uplifting podcast about Holy Spirit testimonies (Holy Spirit Podcasts)
- [Add] Walk through a nature preserve and stop the smell the flowers, honeysuckles, lilacs, or anything else that blooms (Columbia Lakefront)
What about you? What’s something from your Me-Time Menu that fills you up?
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