Take Care of Yourself

One of the most important things I've learned this year is to TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF!

At the end of last year, a really good friend recommended a daily devotional book to me. I shopped for it at B & N and fumbled upon the orginal book it was based upon, Codependent No More. I bought it and read it and one of the major things I took away from it was that you have to take care of yourself.

Taking care of myself is something that I at the time didn't do a very good job at. I must admit I don't do a great job at it now, but I'm a whole lot better than I was before. I learned from this book, that I wasn't taking care of myself and I was taking care of a whole lotta' other people. (Huh? What is she talking about?) Yes, I was showering and dressing myself, eating, and all of that jazz, but actually taking care of myself, NO! I learned that no one was more important than myself. (Not don't get me wrong, I love my child, but you've got to put on the oxygen mask, before trying to save someone else!) I realized that I was shortchanging myself and running myself ragged. I wasn't focusing on me, just everyone else. So, I stepped back and looked at some areas in which I needed to take care of myself and began there. I must admit I have back slid a few times along the way, but I am striving for PROGRESS not PERFECTION!

Along this journey, I have been very misunderstood. People don't understand why I withdrew myself from relationships, why I put distance between me and certain people/situations, why I made some of the choices and decisions that I did. Well, it was all apart of taking care of myself. I had to do it for myself. I had to take a long look in the mirror at myself. I had to analyze and disect relationships and situations. I had to question myself, my motives, and my intentions. I didn't then or don't feel now that I need to justify making changes and improvements in my life. I feel that it was a necessary process that God lead me through and is still guiding me through.

I must say I'm doing better at taking care of myself. I know I need to step it up even more and take back so much of what I have let go. But I'm on my way. Progress not perfection!