 How do you treat yourself? There are times where it can be difficult to take care of ourselves. We tend to blame ourselves for every little mistake, every little thing we don't know, or even punishing ourselves in our everyday lives. Maybe this has become more noticeable lately for you. You tend to feel that the most pressure, burnout and high expectations are coming from yourself more than anyone else. While discipline and responsibility are important, it's also essential to be kind to yourself while striving to meet your goals. To help with that, here are seven ways to be kinder to yourself. 1. Go for a walk and clear your head Have you had any time outside as of late? Try going on walks to your favorite restaurants, places or even your favorite nature trail. It can help significantly with anxiety and stress. If you're pushing yourself extraordinarily hard as of late, you owe this de-stressing opportunity to yourself. An enormous part of showing yourself kindness is ensuring that you are giving yourself the time you need to step away and recharge. Going on a walk in nature has been shown to have incredible effects on mental health. Go on a walk, it'll help clear your mind. 2. Identifying what you need and following through Think about what you need right this very moment. Take a moment to truly evaluate how you are right now. You may notice that you feel a little tired or that you really have been working way too hard. Take a moment and absorb the feelings that you're having right now and tend to them. Choosing to listen to your body and doing a bit of maintenance from time to time can go a very long way. This can help prevent burnout and help you feel ready and recharged for the things that are important to you. Making a conscious decision of what you need and learning to recharge for your priorities can help you reach your goals while making sure to take care of yourself. 3. Food, Drink and Rest Did you know that if you feel thirsty, you're already experiencing a mild amount of dehydration? Making sure that you are carrying a water bottle on you or even just keeping it nearby if you tend to fidget or bite things when you're focusing can be a great way to stay hydrated. When we are stressed or feeling blue, we can tend to forget to eat, drink and sleep enough. Try to picture a friend or family member you love not eating or drinking all day. Maybe you'd bring them a snack or remind them to pace themselves. Doing the same for your own person is a beautiful sign of self-love. 4. Taking Breaks from Stressful Events Have you ever forcefully been pushing yourself towards a deadline, cramming for a test? If you're performing repetitive tasks over and over again, you may find that your ability to retain information will fade quicker than if you spaced the tasks out over extended periods of time. Instead of taking a huge 5-hour study session, try to take multiple hour-long sessions throughout the day to help improve your ability to learn and remember new skills. The spacing effect has a wide variety of situations that it can be implemented, so try to decide against pushing the all-nighters. Sometimes waiting until morning to fix a problem can help you approach it from a fresh and unique angle. 5. Rewarding Yourself for a Job Well Done Find yourself feeling a little empty when you finish tasks you set out to do. Maybe you tend to finish difficult tests, assignments or projects but feel more relieved than accomplished once they're finally done. Generally speaking, when we complete tasks and we feel a wave of relief flow over us, it's because we've just completed an objective that was difficult or otherwise challenging. When we're hard on ourselves, we turn experiences that should be good into an experience that's just expected of us. You may find yourself less excited to complete tasks. Reward systems can work one day. If you've finished something you've been working on for weeks, take a moment to give yourself a pat on the back. Be proud of accomplishments, both big and small. Congratulate yourself in the same way that you would congratulate someone that you love. 6. Forgiving Yourself and Moving Forward Haven't we all done something that we've regretted before? Sometimes, we default to blaming ourselves. This can lead to us insulting ourselves, our intelligence, or questioning why we are the way that we are. While self-reflection and accountability is important, there is such a thing as pushing yourself too hard or holding yourself accountable to an unreasonable standard. Everyone makes mistakes. Whether big or small, everyone has regrets. Learning self-forgiveness is one of the most wonderful self-love tools that you have in order to help move forward. Remembering that you're only human and that mistakes are okay helps you forgive yourself and move on. Show yourself the compassion you deserve. Did you relate to this video? Did you find ways to treat yourself in a more kind way? Treating ourselves like the enemy or a nuisance can cause a lot of grief and frustration, especially when we don't build ourselves the foundation we need in order to improve and succeed. Encouraging yourself and showing yourself that you're willing to be patient can go a long way. Has there been a time where you realized that being kinder to yourself actually helped improve the way you approach a situation you had to face or improve your mental health? Share your experiences in the comment section below. We appreciate hearing your stories. Leave a like and share this video with a friend if you think it'll help them. As usual, all references are in the description. Thank you for watching. Until next time!