Personal Self-care Plan

What does self-care mean to me?

Self-care is the ability to identify what my mind, body and spirit needs and to take action to meet those needs. My self-care goal as a pre-service teacher is to be mindful of my day-to-day stressors. I aim to carve out time for the necessary self-care to stay balanced and healthy during field experiences.

Emotional Health

Emotional self-care is essential to our overall well-being. With each new day comes new experiences. It's crucial to realize that emotions are not permanent and to practice experiencing and letting go of them. This practice is easier said than done! Strategies I utilize to cope with various emotions include: 


  • Surround myself with the people that I love and care for. I am extremely fortunate to have many individuals in my life who are invested in my well-being. My support network is in tune with my well-being and has been known to help and support me even before I ask!
  • Ask for help! With some life experience under my belt, I am no stranger to asking for help. It can be challenging to admit that you need help. Asking for help with family responsibilities, mentorship through a new experience, and accessing mental health resources helps mitigate a taxing load. 
  • Take a beat. To take a beat means to pause for a moment, an hour, or a night to respond, rest, react, or understand. We live in an extremely fast-paced culture that demands we are connected and ready for action at all times. Taking a beat gives us permission to slow down and take care of ourselves.
  • Grace. Through experience, I have learned that by giving myself grace to fail, try again and to keep going, I can accomplish and experience more in life. 


Physical Health

I believe that physical self care is the foundation of all self care. Taking care of our bodies physically helps maintain our mental and emotional health. Physical self-care strategies I practice are: 


  • Proper sleeping, eating and drinking. Since I struggle with sleep, following a sleep hygiene schedule is imperative. I like to allocate time to slow down in the day before going to bed and follow a routine that tells my body it’s time to sleep. I love to cook nutritious food for my family and try new recipes to fuel my body with what it needs to live an active lifestyle. As a coffee lover, I am not the greatest at remembering to drink water! I use strategies like setting a goal for how many water bottles to drink and use mnemonic devices to help me to remember to drink more water! 
  • Running, Capoeira, Cross Country Skiing. I love to be active and take time each day to either run, play capoeira or cross country ski. It is a great way to move my body, and connect with my family and friends. Moving my body improves my mood and mental state. 


Mental Health

Being mindful of my mental health involves being attuned to my physical and emotional well-being. Strategies I utilized to practice mental health self care beyond my emotional and physical self care are: 


  • Being in the outdoors. Carving out time to be outside is extremely important to me. Walking, running, biking, spending time in the mountains and camping are opportunities for me to recharge mentally. 
  • Being social. Creating opportunities to connect with friends and family to laugh, eat good food and be social fills my bucket! 
  • Accessing mental health resources. No matter how diligent a person can be to utilize self-care strategies there can be times when you need professional help. Knowing I can access resources such as University of Calgary Student Wellness Services, and University of Calgary Mental Health Services.