Is Taking Care of Yourself Selfish?

As women, we often struggle with the issue of taking care of ourselves. When you really think about it, this is an absurd concept. How can taking care of yourself take something away from others?

Somehow we, as women, have been conditioned to believe that every waking moment of every day needs to be committed to someone or something other than to ourselves. If you don’t take care of yourself, you will become someone else’s burden.

According to Dr. Daniel Amen, author of Unleash the Power of the Female Brain, if you really want to take care of your family, you will take care of yourself first. In his 25 years of running his Amen Clinics, he has found that when women take care of themselves first, everyone in their family has the best opportunity to be healthy as well. He also found that when you don’t take care of yourself, it can be truly devastating on both the physical and emotional health of the whole family. According to Dr. Amen, taking care of yourself as a priority makes everyone in your family healthier. Regardless of whether you have a family, Dr. Amen has found that when adult females take better care of themselves, it tends to positively affect those around them, whoever they may be. This is true with your animal companions as well. When you take better care of yourself, your animal companions will be healthier and happier.

Obviously, then, taking care of yourself is not a selfish act, but not taking care of yourself is. It is selfish to not take care of yourself. Not taking care of yourself has dramatic, negative impacts on your family.

Excerpt from The Thriving Woman's Guide to Setting Boundaries

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