Great friendships are hard to come by. They can enrich our lives, and some can last a lifetime. Having great friends requires some time, a pint of luck, and much more effort from both sides. When 2 people effortlessly share their thoughts, feelings, and support chances are that they are going to have a great relationship.
With them, you can create endless moments of joy and happiness. They will influence your life and make it better overall.
You should also focus on yourself, and have me time only. In the time of need, everyone needs to chill out a bit just to collect themself and that is perfectly fine. However, you should be careful not to overdo it, and have that time become isolation time.
When you are too focused on improving yourself you will be left by yourself. So you need to find a balance to keep yourself in good shape and to keep your friendships intact.
Self care and friendship shouldn’t be mutually exclusive. They can coexist, but as with everything else, don’t overdo or overthink it. Tap into your gut feelings and share that with your friend.
As we continue to grow so do our friendships. Learn to involve your friends with your self care routine, it will be a game changer. Your friend also needs his space and time for himself. Try to communicate these phases, and offer support to each other and your friendship will prosper.
Setting boundaries is a good thing but we must not be overstepping them. By communicating that with your friend you will be aware of their boundaries, and they will be aware of yours.
Just don’t overthink this too much. If you have great friends they will be understanding and reasonable with your wishes.
How to Know if my Self Care Routine will Hurt my Friendships?
Since this topic is very touchy and mostly subjective there are a couple of objective traits that you can spot if you notice that your self care routine affects your friendship.
Activity – If you start to notice that you are not so active as you used to with your friends because they have obligations and so do you. Maybe it is time to rearrange some self care activities and to check with them more often.
Chances are they are in the same scenario as you. You can share with them your routines, and if there is a space you can do them together. It doesn’t need to be some form of exercise, you can watch self care and self love movies together. I have created a list of a couple of them so you can check them out here.
Communication – With our busy and fast lives it is easy to fall into a certain pattern where you are just doing your business and don’t leave too much room for relaxation and leisure. If you notice that you are not as used to staying and be in touch with your great friends it is time to pump some breaks on your schedule.
Friendship is not a job that you just do and call it a day. It needs to be nurtured and taken care of. Call your friends, surprise them and share some joyful moments together. Just communicating back and forth over the phone can be stressful by itself.
Developing a Sense of not belonging – This is something that can happen if you are too isolated with your self care routine. You have worked on yourself and learned new things and your friends can’t keep up because they are not involved with your process.
Share your experience, and try to explain what you have been working on. If you had any results tell them about it. You might be surprised with that because you can receive constructive feedback, they can give you a compliment, encourage you to keep going, etc.
Becoming Tired of Listening to Them – Communication is the key. If your great friend starts to only talk about themself, and not show interest in listening to you, then you need to tell them what you have noticed about them. Becoming tired of listening means that you are not involved in the conversation for quite some time.
If you can communicate that part with your friend and they slow that down you are doing great service to your friendship, to you, and to them as well. If they return negative feedback on that then you might have a toxic friend. I have written a post about how can toxic friends affect your self esteem, you can read it here.
Focusing on your time only – As stated before, everyone needs a bit of time for themselves. However, there is a fine line that can be easily crossed. You are more hiding in your own place rather than sharing yourself to the world and friends. It is a comfort zone.
Lacking care for anyone is a very dangerous territory. You need human connection and contact. Whatever your situation may be, try to communicate that with your friends. Explain to them your position and feelings. Try to do your best for that relationship don’t let it slide.
How to Balance Self Care and Friendships?
Care is important, care about yourself and about your friends. Balance is everything. What you need to remember is not to isolate those two.
Involve your friends in self care activities. They will enjoy spending their time with you and taking care of themself at the same time. Share your progress with them, and work together on improving yourselves.
Once you have shared you can also ask for and receive feedback on your routine, and results. Ask them about their self care routine. Let that be a learning experience for you both.
Overtime self care routine can become an isolation routine. Friends are much-needed support for our growth. They can also shake you up with their feedback, as you can be very subjective about your routine. Great friends can get you in check back if you are going in an unhealthy way.
Don’t think about having friendships and care routines as separate parts. They are essential parts of your life. You couldn’t see the whole forest if you are focused on one tree.
Can Friendship Be a Part of Your Self Care Routine?
In short yes, the longer answer will be – yes it can.
A study from Mayo Clinic shows that friendships can not only enrich your life experience overall but also be good for your health too.
You will have support when needed and your mood will definitely be improved every time you encounter or talk to your friend. Positive energy can also be felt if that conversation means a lot to you. Especially if your energies are compatible.
Basically, it boils down to having someone to share your thoughts and feelings and receive the necessary support and encouragement. Receive but also give it back when needed.
Your self care routine will become more active and efficient when you involve your friends. You can share and learn something new.
The better your relationship is with that person you are more to put more of yourself and energy into that friendship.
Having great friends will make you feel more alive and in the end, is what makes us human.
Taking care of yourself is the best form of self love, if you are interested more to know about that you can read my recent post here.
Overall lifelong friendships are mutually beneficial to you and your friend.
Thanks for reading, have a nice day and take care.
