Question
What are some barriers to self-care?
Answer
Engaging in self-care can be challenging due to various barriers. These obstacles include:
- Attachment to unhealthy behaviors or addiction
- Lack of motivation
- Difficulty in deciding when to adopt healthy behaviors
- Challenges in maintaining healthy behaviors without social support
- Dealing with multiple health conditions (multi-morbidity)
- Experiencing significant life events such as relationship endings or loss
- Having an inadequate response to the symptoms of burnout
- Stigma associated with seeking help for self-care, particularly among health professionals
These barriers can impact individuals' ability to prioritize and engage in self-care, especially in high-stress roles like system-change work.
This Ask the Expert is an excerpt from the course, Self-Care and Systems Change for Behavioral Health Professionals, presented by Sophie Nathenson, PhD.
