The Importance of Self-Care with Recreational Therapist Shaunna Nordstrom

ALSO in PINK with Alexandria Lawrence

Recreational therapist Shaunna Nordstrom has worked in residential treatment centres, mental & behavioural hospitals and rehab facilities. She provided services to patients of all ages before leaving the profession to become a full-time mom. We discuss the importance of self-care and Shaunna reveals how her background in recreational therapy has helped with the various relationships in her life, including with her three children.

Benefits of Recreational Therapy

• Discover what’s missing. Where’s the need? What in my self-care am I lacking? Rec therapy could be right for you if (like one of Shaunna’s clients) “you’ve been so busy that you don’t know what your likes and interests are anymore”.
• Greater autonomy. And control of your life. Develop the skills to be able to do it on your own. Learn to plan, set and reach your goals.
• Better quality of life. Essentially this is what it’s all about. Activity-based learning to enhance your quality of life.

Create Time for Yourself

Self-care needs to be an essential part of all of our lives. So, now is the time to figure out:

1. How much time do you need for self-care?
2. How can you make sure it happens?

Everyone’s different. So take a few minutes to imagine what your ideal self-care routine would look like. Do you need 30 minutes every day? Do you need more? Do you need less?

• How much time do you need?
• Schedule that time (daily, weekly)
• Plan what you’ll do during that time
• Make it happen!

Making yourself a self-care schedule is important. “Now this time is blocked out. Nothing else can take this time”.

And Shaunna has found that if she doesn’t plan what she’s going to do during her “me time”, it no longer really fulfils her self-care needs. If she doesn’t plan anything fun for herself, she might just get some of her to-do lists done and it’s no longer as therapeutic. ✨

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