By middle age, most of us have lost already, or will soon lose our parents, perhaps even spouses, best friends and significant others. Who will mother us now? Who will take care of us? Or more important, who will care whether we take care of ourselves?

 

Now is the time for us to learn how to become our own best friend, daughter and mother. And this is the chance to be the sort of mother that we always wanted if we did not already have her. For me it was the cheerful, optimistic, fun loving Mary Poppins mom that my little girl Self needed so badly.

But whatever our childhood was like, that was then and this is now. Now we can give ourselves the unconditional love and support that we did or did not have as we were growing up. We can and must assume the responsibility to feed, nurture, encourage, comfort, pamper and challenge our Self, tuck ourself in and whisper into our own ear at night as we slip off to sleep, "Good night, honey. I love you."

The Queen Suggests
A Self Care Regime

• Think about your daily habits. Are they healthy? What improvements might you make in your diet, your exercise program, your work environment, your family life, your friendships, or in other aspects of your routine to improve your well-being?
• If you decide to make changes in your life, be realistic in your expectations. Your goal is not to be as you were at thirty, it is to be your best Self today and tomorrow.
• Adapt the changes you decide on with your full Intention and Attention. If you want a certain result, you must work to actualize it.
• Think about caring for yourself as an act of love, a joy,a ritual, rather than an odious duty. Attitude is all. Your self-care is, after all, strictly a gift you are giving to yourself.