Saakvitne and Pearlman

SELF-CARE CHECKLIST

self-care checklist

• Physical Self-Care  

• Eat regularly (e.g. breakfast, lunch, and dinner)  

• Eat healthily  

• Exercise

• Get regular medical care for prevention

• Take time off when sick

• Get massages  

•  Dance, swim, walk, run, play sports, sing, or do some other physical activity that’s fun

• Get enough sleep

• Wear clothes you like

• Take vacations

• Take day trips or mini-vacations

• Make time away from telephones, pagers, email, internet

• Other

• Psychological Self-Care

• Make time for self-reflection

• Have your own personal psychotherapy

• Write in a journal

• Read literature that is unrelated to work

• Do something at which you are not expert or in charge

• Decrease stress in your life

• Notice your inner experience – listen to your thoughts, judgments, beliefs, attitudes, and feelings  

• Let others know different aspect of you

• Engage your intelligence in a new area, e.g., go to an art museum, sports event, theater performance

• Practice receiving from others

• Be curious

• Say no to extra responsibilities sometimes

• Other

• Emotional Self-Care  

• Spend time with others whose company you enjoy

• Stay in contact with important people in your life  

• Give yourself affirmations, praise yourself  

• Love yourself

• Reread favorite books, re-view favorite movies

• Identify comforting activities, objects, people, relationships, places and seek them out  

• Allow yourself to cry

• Find things that make you laugh  

• Express your outrage in social action, letters, donations, marches, protests

• Other:  

• Spiritual Self-Care

• Make time for reflection  

• Spend time with nature  

• Find a spiritual connection or community  

• Be open to inspiration  

• Cherish your optimism and hope  

• Be aware of nonmaterial aspects of life  

• Try at times not to be in charge or the expert

• Be open to not knowing

• Identify what is meaningful to you and notice its place in your life  

• Meditate  

• Pray  

• Sing  

• Spend time with children  

• Have experiences of awe  

• Contribute to causes in which you believe  

• Read inspirational literature (talks, music, etc.)  

• Other:  

• Workplace or Professional Self-Care  

• Take a break during the workday (e.g., lunch)  

• Take time to chat with co-workers  

• Make quiet time to complete tasks

• Identify projects or tasks that are exciting and rewarding  

• Balance your caseload so no one day or part of a day is “too much”  

• Get regular supervision or consultation  

• Negotiate for your needs (benefits, pay raise)  

• Have a peer support group  

• Develop a non-trauma area of professional interest