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The Magic of Self-Care

The Magic of Self-Care

Last updated on: December 14, 2017 at 5:27 pm by Annwyn Avalon

The Magic of Self-Care 2017-12-14T17:27:52-08:00 Annwyn Avalon

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For me in the past I have struggled with self-care, self-care can be anything from regularly brushing your hair and getting dressed to things like painting your toes, doing your nails, hiking, working out or sleeping.

Lapis and Lavender - Image by Annwyn

Lapis and Lavender – Image by Annwyn

To me, self-care is being kind to myself, not allowing myself to fall into the abyss of my own thoughts, I use the mantra “I don’t have to fall into the abyss” quite regularly, and for those moments when I’m hanging on the edge it becomes an energizing chant. While this does work for me quite often, there are times when I do fall into the abyss, and no amount of self-care can really get me out. That is why there is sleep, and why I have a therapist. Self-care should not be a treatment form trauma and abuse, rather it is essential to maintaining a healthy emotional state within, so that I’m not at my therapist each day.

Self-care helps me keep my thoughts and actions moving the way I want them to, it helps me to maintain balance, I am responsible for my thoughts and actions, no one else is, and in this world of social media, no amount of culling my Facebook can keep me from spiraling if and when that dreaded article, meme or photo that I don’t want to see comes across my feed. There is no possible way for each and every person to be responsible for what might trigger a stranger, and even things like “trigger warning” can’t undo a headline title that makes me feel like crap or sends me back to a place that I don’t want to be. This is why self-care is so important.

Hawthorn and Rose - Image by Annwyn

Hawthorn and Rose – Image by Annwyn

Self-care is incredibly individual and should be tailored to the persons needs and wants, not what a commercial tells you, what your friends do, or even what the self-help books say. It should consist of only that which fills you. Magic and Witchcraft is best practiced from a place of “The Full Chalice” because you can’t give with an empty cup, just as you can’t cast with an empty energy body.

For me self-care is the key to balancing my emotions, when I’m grumpy, a bubble bath with meditation can calm me and give me perspective so that I’m not out in the world being an ass hole to random strangers. Sometimes self-care is getting angry and burning paper or throwing stuffed animals at a wall. Sometimes self-care is watching a movie when I’m particularly depressed that I know will help me feel much much better.

Self-care is doing what is best for me, and any particular moment. As someone who regularly put every other person, animal and thing over myself on a regular basis, self-care is essential. It is a pause, a break in the “must do for others” and reminds me that I need time to sleep, paint my nails, brush my hair, put on a nice dress, or take a bath. It is about maintaining a healthy spiritual and mental state so that I can continue to give to others, with a full vessel.

All my life I was taught that I was second, or less than, and that others were more important. Also, having a serving nature and loving to teach others often leaves me in a state of depletion. Without regular self-care I remain depleted and on the verge of burnout. Practicing regular self-care, helps me stay balanced, and reminds me that I matter, and if I matter to me, then I can give so much more to others. Can you imagine the power of a spell that has the energy of “I matter to me” behind it?

Bleeding Heart - Image by Annwyn

Bleeding Heart – Image by Annwyn

Self-care Is important for everyone, but it is going to be very different for each person. What might be comforting for someone might be a trigger or stressful for another person. The need to take a quick self-care bath Self- care is essential to our happiness, our wellbeing and helps to fill the chalice or energy body so that we are the best and most powerful Witches we can be, all the time. Self-care should be something that is part of your regular magical and mundane routines. As you might have guessed magical self-care and mundane self -care can be different! How do you self-care in a magical way? What about a mundane way? How do they co-mingle in your own practice? And when was the last time you engaged in some delicious self-care?

One of my favorite ways to self-care is to sink down into a relaxing bath and to let the magic of the water and plants swirl around and heal me. If don’t know where to start try a bath! You can enhance baths in many magical ways, with salts, herbs, oils and crystals. For a simple yet effective bath try the recipe below!

Try this Recipe!

1 Cup Epsom Salts
3 drops Peppermint Oil
A pinch of Rosemary
A Pinch of Eucalyptus
Fill the bath, charge with rejuvenation and jump in!

**** In no way is self-care an acceptable replacement or treatment from real trauma, scars and abuses. As a survivor of sexual assault and abuse, someone who lives with depression, is not nuro-typical and has an autoimmune that regularly kicks my ass, self-care is essential to my health, but is not suffient nor should be considered treatment for such struggles.

If you would like to learn more about Annwyn click here

***ETA- My blog posts are my musings, they are not an invitation for you to get on your psychological soap box and tell me how I can improve myself and what I am doing wrong. Please feel free to share your own stories, but unless I am paying you for medical and/or psychological services do NOT give unsolicited advice…

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