Self Care Checklist
Don’t forget to take care of yourself. Drink water and eat regularly. Remind yourself to rest and take breaks. Ask others to help, listen or support you in anyway you need.
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Commit to doing at least one thing for yourself and your well-being each day. This will help you stay balanced and reduce stress so you can continue to manage the situation.
Stress symptoms are normal under these circumstances. How you are feeling is normal and natural and may be experienced differently by each family member. Responses to stress and trauma can be different for each person.
These are some possible symptoms* that you, or others, may be feeling. Be mindful of:
Physical:
- Chills
- Thirst
- Vomiting
- Nausea
- Dizziness
- Headaches
- Chest pains
- Elevated Blood Pressure
- Shock symptoms
- Tension
- Insomnia
- Fatigue
- Exhaustion
- Stomach/digestive problems
Any of these symptoms may need medical attention. Maintain regular contact with your Doctor if any of these symptoms persist.
Emotional
- Fear
- Guilt
- Grief
- Denial
- Anxiety
- Agitation
- Depression
- Intense anger
- Feeling overwhelmed
- Disconnection
- Loss of emotional control
- Inappropriate emotional responses
- Emotional outbursts
Mental
- Confusion
- Nightmares
- Hyper-vigilance
- Suspiciousness
- Difficulty problem solving
- Difficulty making decisions
- Poor concentration/memory
- Heightened/lowered alertness
- Hyper-critical
- Behavioural
- Any change in normal behaviour
- Withdrawal
- Irritability
- Anger
- Restlessness
- Irregular sleeping patterns
- Change in social activity
- Resorting to old coping habits
- Loss/increase of appetite
- Loss/increase of alcohol consumption
- Increasing anxiety
- Absenteeism
- Pacing
*This is not a complete list; you may be experiencing other symptoms not included here. Be sure to talk to your doctor if symptoms continue more than a week.
Helpful tips:
- Schedule regular family meetings to check in with everyone and see how each of you is doing. This will also provide an opportunity to share information and plan together, which will reduce miscommunication.
- Know that you are not alone and that there are always people that want to help you search, people to support you, and people to talk to. Reach out – people do care!
- Talk with someone. Whether it is an Elder, therapist, family member or a friend, you need to be able to speak freely with someone who will listen openly to your feelings. Remember that you can also attend or request a ceremony.
- Make a commitment to do at least one thing for yourself and your well-being each day. This will help you stay balanced and reduce stress so you can continue to manage the situation. Try to
– Go for a 10-15 minute walk
– Call a friend to go out for coffee
– Write in a journal
– Connect with nature
– Find a stream, river, lake or other water for the healing energy
– Make time for exercise
– Light a candle and have 5 minutes of quiet time
– Take an afternoon nap
– Talk to an Elder or other spiritual advisor
- Your body needs fuel and sleep to be able to stay healthy. Even though it may be hard, it is important that you eat a balanced diet with regular meals and get at least 8 hours of sleep a night.
- Find a place with no distractions that you can go to and feel at peace. Even a few minutes will help.
- You may find that the strong emotions you are feeling help drive you in the search for your loved one. Remember that you need to be able to release these emotions in a positive way as they build up – allow yourself time to blow off steam in a safe and healthy way.
- Sometimes it may feel like you should have been there or done something differently in order to prevent this from happening. Be gentle with yourself and others, and know that blaming yourself or others isn’t fair to you, or helpful for your loved one.
- Some people find relief in writing, whether it be a letter, scribbles of thoughts, or just writing everything you’re feeling, thinking and what is going on around you.