39. Back to Baseline: When the Self-Care Coach Needs a Reset Too

In this unscripted and raw episode recorded during my annual girls’ getaway, I share what it looks like when even the self-care coach feels out of alignment.
From a cozy cabin near St. Louis, I reflect on the signs of burnout creeping back in—and how I’m using my own BECOMING Method® to realign with what matters most.

This is your reminder that healing isn’t linear. And self-care isn’t a box to check—it’s a way of life that evolves with you.

Takeaways + Action Steps:

• Reflect on what “off track” feels like for you.
• Revisit the Wheel of Life to assess your current state.
• Use Morning Pages or free-writing to clear your mind.
• Start (or restart) the BECOMING Method—because yes, it works.
• Give yourself permission to pause and reset, without guilt.

Mentioned in this episode: 💻 Grab a free digital copy of Self-Care Isn’t Selfish: The Compassionate Nurse's Step-by-Step Guide to Personalized Stress Relief at SelfCareIsntSelfish.com

If you're feeling overwhelmed, burned out, or like there’s never enough time, I’ve got something just for you! Head to https://selfcareisntselfish.com to grab your FREE copy of my book, Self-Care Isn’t Selfish: The Compassionate Nurse’s Step-by-Step Guide to Personalized Stress Relief. It’s packed with simple, effective strategies to help you prioritize your needs—without guilt—so you can feel energized, focused, and ready to take on the day. Go to https://selfcareisntselfish.com 

Looking for connection with people who get the stress and self-care struggles of nurses and caregivers? Check out https://thenursesbreakroom.com

Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennylytlern/

More ways to connect here: https://linktr.ee/jennylytle

Chapters

• 1:00 Spontaneous Vacation Recording
• 1:24 Annual Girls Trip Experience
• 2:27 Morning Pages Revelation
• 4:32 Season of Being and Waiting
• 5:31 Returning to the Becoming Method
• 6:29 Taking Care of Yourself First

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:31

So I wasn't going to record a podcast today, but I decided to just go ahead and do one that was a little or maybe a lot different than my usual or maybe a lot different than my usual. So I am on vacation right now. I'm on an annual girls trip and this is one of the highlights of my year. We go somewhere that isn't too terribly far away so that we're able to drive and we get a big cabin and house that we're able to put out in and have plenty of space to be together but also to have time to ourselves, and we spend a lot of time eating and sleeping and relaxing and talking, and then we do a little bit of shopping or something in the nearby town closest to where we're staying. We usually stay somewhere kind of near a biggish city, so this year we are by St Louis and we're in a cabin that has a pond and it's beautiful and there's something about getting away and taking intentional time in nature that really helps to clarify some things and to make some things more apparent, and yesterday I took some time to do my morning pages, which you may have heard me talk about, but I haven't done in quite a while and basically, it's just sitting down in the morning and free writing everything that is in your head, and it can be incredibly helpful just to get some of that stuff out of there, get some of those swirling thoughts to calm down a bit out of there. Get some of those swirling thoughts to calm down a bit. And as I did that and as I looked at some of the things that I've done recently in terms of taking control of my talk about stress and burnout and making sure that we're taking care of ourselves, yes, I do those things, but I'm pushing a little too hard right now and I don't know exactly what to do with all of that. And so right now, I feel like I'm in this season of being and waiting and figuring out what really matters most, and I'm going to work through my own process again because that's the way life works. I'm going to work through my own process again Because that's the way life works. It's not one and done, and I know that and I talk about that, but sometimes we need to take a little bit of a step back to realize just how far, off course, maybe we've gone ourselves. And so when I get done sending this and when I get done writing the email for today. I am going to sit down, start with the Wheel of Life, see where things are. I'm going to start with the baseline and then I'm going to move through the rest of the becoming method because it works and because I need that clarity and that focus again, because I believe in what I believe I'm being called to do and I believe that people need this, and right now I know that I'm one of those people.

Speaker 1: 6:00

So if you don't know exactly what I'm talking about in terms of my becoming method, I go through it in more detail in my book, and there's even an infographic in there. And if you don't have my book, you can get a free digital copy on my website at JennyLytlecom. Or if you can't remember that, you can go to SelfCareIsn'tSelfishcom and grab a digital copy there too. You can go to selfcareisntselfishcom and grab a digital copy there too.

Speaker 1: 6:43

I just encourage you if you're feeling like hey, I'm just not quite feeling, like I want to be feeling what it is that you need to be doing to take care of you. That's how my week will be spent, and I know that not everybody has the opportunity to just step away from things for the week. It's something that can be done in in steps and over a period of time, but I've worked through this before and I know I know that I'm able to do parts of it more quickly because I've done it before. I've done it before. But whatever you need to do, take the time to figure out what it is that you really need right now, and remember that self-care isn't selfish. It's the only way that we can continue to show up for others and be our best selves.