Name________________________________________		Date_________________

Self-Care Plan

Self-care is often thought of as taking good care of one’s physical body through exercise, a good diet, and getting enough sleep.  Others think of self-care as doing something nice for oneself or having a good day.  However, self-care, as it is defined here, involves much more than that.  It means leading a well-balanced lifestyle in which time and energy are put into many different facets of one’s life.  The more areas of one’s life that are well-maintained, the more resources one has to draw on.  It’s similar to the old saying of “don’t put all your eggs in one basket”.  While not every facet of one’s life can be attended to all the time, the goal should be striving to distribute time and energy among a number of different areas, with the particular areas of focus shifting from day to day and week to week.  When self-care is poor the risk of relapse--a return to old, destructive behaviors increases.  Likewise, poor self-care reduces one’s ability to effectively cope with stress and other challenges of life.  

Listed below are some of the most common areas of concern in people’s lives.  Rate your level of satisfaction with each area from 1 (very dissatisfied-needs extensive attention) to 10 (completely satisfied, couldn’t be better).  In the space below each area write, specifically and concretely, what you can do to improve the quality of that area.  When you are finished you should have a general sense of how good your self-care is as well as the areas in your life most in need of attention.  

Work/career  (work goals, type of work, number of hours)  Satisfaction:_____

Financial  (bills, debts, income, money management)  Satisfaction:_____

Romantic/marital  (quality, amount of time, role in your life)  Satisfaction:_____

Sexuality  (quality, quantity, role in your life, types of expression, goals)  Satisfaction:_____

Family  (parenting, relationships with extended family, in-laws)  Satisfaction:_____

Domestic/household  (cleaning, laundry, quality of living space)  Satisfaction:_____

Medical  (medical or dental problems, medications)  Satisfaction:_____

Health maintenance  (diet, exercise, sleep, quality and balance)  Satisfaction:_____

Social/friends  (quantity, quality, frequency)  Satisfaction:_____

Fun/hobbies  (recreation, extracurricular, frequency, variety)  Satisfaction:_____

Creative/artistic  (ways you express yourself, things you create yourself)  Satisfaction:_____

Educational  (goals, ways you continue to expand your knowledge)  Satisfaction:_____

Spiritual (religious beliefs, faith, higher power)  Satisfaction:_____

Solitary time  (checking in with yourself, knowing your feelings, goals, etc)  Satisfaction:_____

Psychological  (psychological/emotional issues/world view/thinking style)  Satisfaction:_____

Community service  (volunteering, helping others you don’t know well)  Satisfaction:_____

Any other areas of self-care not mentioned/needing attention:  

Satisfaction with general resources (quality/quantity, does it feel adequate to reach your goals):

Time:  Satisfaction:_____

Money:  Satisfaction:_____

Energy:  Satisfaction:_____

Developed by Chris Huffine, Psy.D.
3/2005