What do you do when you are Sick?

As I am writing this article today on ‘ What do you do when you are sick’ , I am tucked up in bed in my new PJ’s.  ( Note, does anyone else insist on new PJ’s when they are sick?!)

I have set myself a small target of catching up on emails and writing this blog.  Then, once complete,  I will rest my both my mind and body by having a nap.  As I write this, my nose is blocked, my body is shivering  and I am sneezing every few minutes.  However, in the back of my mind are the phone calls I need to make, the Life Coaching sessions that I need to cancel today plus the endless social media I need to catch up on.

What do you do when you are sick?

Taking care of yourself when you are sick is good self care, but many of us struggle with it.  We force ourselves to ‘just get on with it’ and carry on regardless.  Most of use don’t even take a day off work as we are nervous about what people will think or we believe we are letting our colleagues down in some way.  Many of just feel guilty about not attending work and we worry about work piling up.    When we do this, we come from a place of fear, not a place of self care or self love.

Listen to Your Body

When you are sick, your body is trying to get your attention.  It is communicating with you and telling you what it needs from you.   However,  most of us ignore what are body is trying to say to us  and we let our fears take over.

If you have ever worked with me or attended one of my workshops or speaker engagements,  you will probably have heard me mention that you life is like a photocopier.   Simply, this means that what ever you believe, think or feel, life will copy this and create it in your experience.

For example, if you don’t respect yourself – people will not respect you or if you choose to ignore your own needs and wants, it is likely that the people around you will do the same.

Therefore, when it comes to self care,  if you really want people to care for you, you need to care for yourself first.

So….What do you do when you are sick?

When you ignore your body, run it to the ground or push yourself too much when you are sick, you may be sending out the following important messages into your photocopier:

  1. I don’t care about my health
  2. Everyone else is more important than me
  3. Work is more important than me
  4. I need to take care of other peoples needs as they are more important than my own.

Do any of those beliefs or thought patterns feel familiar?  If so, they are based on fear rather than self care.  You are not alone in this as this article showed  that over 93% of us are too scared to phone in sick! https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2319366/Employees-scared-sick-days-work.html

Soothe Yourself Downstream into Self Care

The next time you feel sick, ill or exhausted, why not make self care your priority?  To help you feel comfortable in doing this, you need to soothe yourself downstream rather than frightening yourself about what could happen if you don’t go into work or take some time out for yourself.

Remember, when you choose self care you are sending a completely different message out into your photocopier. You are sending:

  1. I care about myself and my health
  2. My needs are important
  3. I am prioritising myself
  4. I matter

Now when you start sending these thoughts and beliefs into your photocopier, you will receive much better outcomes!

So the next time you wonder what do you do when you are sick, try these simple statements to release guilt about and soothe yourself downstream:

  1. It’s important that I look after myself and nothing bad will happen.
  2. It is a good thing to pay attention to my body
  3. My needs are important and it is safe to put myself first.

That’s all from me today – it’s time to snuggle under the covers and make my wellbeing a priority.

With over 20 years experience, Lisa Phillips is the author of The Confidence Coach.   Lisa is a professional wellness speaker and runs workshops in both the private and public sector.   She also works with both private and business clients assisting them to increase their self esteem and confidence. For more information, please see www.amazingcoaching.co.uk