It’s Valentine’s Day weekend and regardless of whether you’re in the mood for romance and chocolate — or you think Cupid is stupid — take a few minutes to love yourself, first and foremost.
That’s right. Heart yourself, people, because self-love is self-care and the undercurrent to better wellness for all of us, whether you’re married, in a relationship, single, separated, or simply complicated. You’ve got to take good care of number one so you can show up strong and healthy for the rest of us. Here’s a Valentine’s self-care shopping list even more important than champagne, flowers and chocolate.
First, love your heart — literally. According to the Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada, heart disease and stroke take one life every seven minutes and 90 per cent of Canadians have at least one risk factor. Did you know that women are more likely to die of a heart attack or stroke than men?
Risk factors to be aware of that we can attend to (as opposed to those we cannot control, such as age or ethnicity) include high blood pressure and high cholesterol, diabetes, being overweight, excess alcohol consumption, physical activity, smoking and stress. Making lifestyle and wellness changes to manage these health factors can reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke by up to 80 percent.
February is Heart Month. Learn more about taking good care of your heart and take the online heart and stroke risk assessment test at heartandstroke.com.
Secondly, honour your body and sexuality by practicing safer sex. Feb. 12 was Sexual and Reproductive Health Day in Canada, raising awareness of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI’s) and encouraging Canadians to enjoy happy and healthy sex throughout the year.
If you need to know more about options for sexual health (and about healthy sexuality in general) optionsforsexualhealth.org is a great resource. You can research sexual health topics including screening and tests, birth control, emergency contraception and pregnancy, and find a local clinic on the Sunshine Coast and beyond. OPT clinics offer non-judgemental and supportive services including birth control counseling and low-cost options for contraceptives, (STI) testing, pregnancy testing and options counseling, and general sexual health information.
You can also call the sexual health hotline 1-800-SEX-SENSE (1-800-739-7367) throughout B.C., for free and confidential sexual health referrals and information. The service is offered Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Finally, cherish your own best friend — yourself. We can at times, forget to be good and gentle to ourselves, being so much kinder and generous to others, first. Try doing something simple and personal that makes your own sweet heart soar this weekend. Enjoy a chocolate, make a wish, light a candle, or take a bubble bath. When you embrace life from a place of inner grace, true love naturally radiates.
