Here's a quick, three-minute tip where we break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help you shift or reframe your perspective.

Today's topic looks at the difference between self-care and coping and how both are beneficial but play different roles in helping to maintain wellbeing. 

First off, self-care tends to be more proactive while coping is more reactive. Meaning self-care is typically more planned and routine, whereas coping skills are typically used in the moment to help manage stressors or intense emotions. 

So self-care is more than just what you're turning to in the moment, and this distinction can be important for two reasons.

First, if we're only looking at self-care as an immediate fix then we can miss out on the benefits of a sustained self-care practice. 

This can include things like reduced stress and lower chance of burnout, feeling more energized and productive, better immune functioning, and higher levels of happiness and contentment. 

The second reason that distinguishing between coping and self-care can be helpful is because self-care has become an entire industry, and we're often marketed things like massages, vacations and even binging TV shows as forms of self-care. 

And while all of those things can be helpful in the short term and provide temporary relief or even an escape, they don't always provide the same benefits as longer-term, sustained self-care practices. 

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*Disclaimer: The information contained in this episode is for the sole purpose of being informative and is not considered complete. It should not replace consultation with a qualified professional.