My favourite activity at my childhood camp was “FREE TIME!” I even remember it being written in capitol letters on the weekly schedule. If it was sunny, we went to the swimming hole. If it was raining, we created a mudslide. Nothing could keep us from going outside to play. As adults, we spend time with friends, play games with the kids, or take a vacation and get lost in a sunset. We have been doing “self-care” our whole lives.
As we age, responsibilities grow and “self-care” becomes more important. Full and part-time jobs, demanding schedules, parenting, caring for aging parents, spending more time with family and friends, justifiably or not, all means less time for ourselves. Add to this the increasing roles and responsibilities of counselling, and effective self-care becomes not only a professional, but ethical imperative.
*The views expressed by our authors are personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views of the CCPA