National Self Care Week runs from the 15-19th November and is bound to be a week that inspires, enlightens, and changes the lives of people across the country. Research carried out by Hearst found that 80% of British consumers believe the country needs a greater emphasis on self-care after Covid-19. Another survey from Glaxo Smith Kline and IPSOS found that 65% of people across the UK, Spain, Italy and Germany are more likely to consider their health in day-to-day decision making.

According to Sue Potter, Communications Manager at Bromley Well, who organise Self Care Week in Bromley, “Self-Care Week is a national event led by the Self Care Forum in November each year. The Self Care Forum is an NHS charity which aims to further the reach of self-care and embed it into everyday life. They define self-care as the actions individuals take for themselves, on behalf of and with others in order to develop, protect, maintain and improve their health, wellbeing or wellness.”

Potter said, “In 2020 during the pandemic, Bromley Well coordinated the first Self Care Week for people in Bromley. Due to COVID it was held “virtually” with activities, events, information and chat on our website, social media channels and online meetings.  Our event last year was commended by the Self Care Forum in their Innovation Awards.

“Following the success of last year’s week, we’re coordinating activities again and are delighted to have lots of colleagues in other organisations taking part too including Macmillan Cancer, NHS South-East London Clinical Commissioning Group, Primetime (Mytime Active), Chef Ollie from Vegetarian for Life, Magpie Dance and Bromley Trading Standards to name a few!”

When asked how people can take better care of themselves, Potter said, “Self Care Week is a perfect time to think about how we live our lives and maybe make some small changes that will help us take better care of ourselves and our families. Those changes could mean looking at what we eat or drink, or how much exercise we do, or how much sleep we are getting. They could be about our work-life balance because staying connected to our friends and family is also vital to our wellbeing, and theirs.

 “Remember, it isn’t just the GP practice that can help, pharmacies are also health experts. They are on every High Street and can help with all sorts of ailments. Pharmacists can also signpost you to the right place for additional health advice or treatment.” Potter also recommended the use of NHS 111 as a good resource for non-life-threatening conditions.

For younger generations, Potter recommended the use of apps such as Headspace, and also the website of the charity YoungMinds. She says, “It’s so important to make time for self-care every day, and if things start to become overwhelming then talking to someone you trust – a friend, a teacher, a family member – can be a big help in resolving those feelings.”

 

More generally, Bromley Well recommends the “Five Ways to Wellbeing”: Connect, be active, take notice, learn, give. Potter says, “There are so many small and easy ways to implement ideas under each of these headings and taking one small action is an act of self-care. The important thing to remember is, practising self-care is something we all need to do every day. For ourselves.  For our families.  For Social Care and the NHS.”

You can attend Bromley Self Care Week events by going to:

https://www.bromleywell.org.uk/news/bromley-s-self-care-week-start/

 

Helpful Links

Primetime, an online fitness streaming service from Mytime Active –

https://www.mytimeactive.co.uk/activities/primetime

Headspace, an online meditation app –

 https://www.headspace.com/

YoungMinds, a mental health charity for young people –

https://www.youngminds.org.uk/young-person/

The national award that Bromley Self Care Week received a commendation for –

https://www.selfcareforum.org/coronavirus-self-care-innovation-award/self-care-innovation-awards-2/