I've always credited myself to be a giving person. I believe this to be part of my personal love language. But before I learned how important it is to recharge often and prioritize self-care, I had a bad habit of letting my tanks run dry, leaving nothing left for me nor anyone else.
When I was running on empty years ago, I completely lost my ability to give (my time, my love, my creativity). Anytime anyone asked me for something, I felt resentful and angry when I'd give to them and I didn't truly understand why. It wasn't until I hit a breaking point where I completely shut down and said no to everything that I was able to reset.
This reset gave me time to reflect and allowed me to be still enough to realize that a lot of the people around me were not good for me. More importantly, it made me realize that I was always putting their needs before my own. I didn't know that I had to prioritize my own self-care first in order to have enough juice to give to others.
The anger and resentment was an inner-alarm that was screaming for me to choose my self-care first. Now I know. These days I try to keep my tanks pretty full. I make a habit now of recharging often to invest in myself to thrive. The best byproduct of this practice is that it adds a lot more happiness and balance in my life.
So if you're a giver, remember that you must first prioritize self-care. And if it ever hurts to give to others, it's an alarm to either ask for help and/or re-evaluate how to keep your tanks full.
Be well and may you recharge often.
Kelly Stone Cramer, https://www.happinessrecharge.com