• Fr Jo Paul Kiriyanthan

Every year WHO celebrates ‘International Self-Care Day’ on July 24th. The choice of this date was intentional. July 24th can be abbreviated as 24/7, which also means 24 hours and seven days. Therefore, the message is loud and clear, self-care is an effort without breaks. It’s a continuous process where every individual tries to care one’s own self to keep oneself healthy, fresh and effective holistically. Psychology and spirituality offer a number of self-care methods. Self-care doesn’t base on selfishness or narcissism. Since no one can serve from an empty pot, it’s a must for all, not an option.

Indian scenarios demand it more. In India, there were 1.71 lakh suicides in 2022, registering a 4.2% hike over 2021 and 27% compared to 2018. Moreover, in India, the rate of suicide was the highest in 2022. Another important data speaks that 62% of Indian employees experience burn-out which is three times higher than the global average of 20%. Then, one in every 20 Indians, i.e., 5.3% of Indian population experiences signs of depression. We need to invest more care on ourselves.

Self-acceptance is the basis of self-care. Here acceptance means to notice and accept the elements in one’s own personality without any positive or negative judgement. It can be about physical appearance- colour, shape, look and each detail of the body. It can be about the family- financial status, parents, their profession etc. Accepting one’s own past, present and future becomes part of self-care- past experiences like traumas; present experiences like one’s own vocation, profession; the demands of future etc.

Self-acceptance has a theological basis. It is about to see and accept as God sees each individual. Jesus’ command “love your neighbour as yourself” (Mk. 12,31) demand a holistic interpretation. At times the focus remains only on the first part- love your neighbour. Better love for oneself would make us more available to love others effectively. Lack of self-love would limit us from loving others unconditionally as God loves. Reinhold Niebuhr picked the right words in his ‘serenity prayer.’ “Oh God, give us the serenity to accept what cannot be changed, the courage to change what can be changed and the wisdom to know the one from the other.”