Do you speak up for yourself?
I am an advocate. I’m an advocate for my health and well-being, making conscious choices that sometimes buck against the “norm” and expectations of others. And I am an advocate for the health and wellness of others.
“I learned a long time ago the wisest thing I can do is be on my own side, be an advocate for myself and others like me.”
–Maya Angelou
Benefits of Advocating for Yourself
And I’m also a huge proponent of you advocating for yourself. Quite simply, self-advocacy is speaking up for yourself to get your needs met appropriately. Those needs can include nourishment, sleep, help in the home or with the kids, positive regard, respect, effective medical care, and self-care time. Your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health depend upon you getting your needs met with the cooperation of loved ones, coworkers, supervisors, politicians, and medical providers.
Advocating for yourself is required for your authentic experience of love and joy, and for your total health. It is also important for you to know that unmet needs lead to depression, anxiety, illness, addiction, and other unhealthy conditions.
One client presented with anxiety and panic attacks. She usually “goes with the flow” when her husband and family make plans and does not express her needs or desires. When things don’t turn out the way she wants, she gets angry which expresses itself as anxiety and panic.
Advocating for yourself is required for your
authentic experience of love and joy, and for your total health.
So, understand that if you are not comfortable speaking up for yourself and allow others to direct your life and experience, then your emotional boundaries are the issue. Reminder from Living In Total Health and previous blogs: emotional boundaries involve relinquishing your needs to please others, giving in to others against your better judgement, and taking unrealistic responsibility for the choices of others.
How to Advocate for Yourself
You can learn to self-advocate, however. Follow these simple steps to ADVOCATE for yourself:
A
cknowledge your needs and list them
D
etermine to whom and when to communicate your needs – spouse/partner, siblings, doctor
V
ocalize your needs with your words, communicating them to who you identified above
O
rganize your time, energy, and resources to allow space for you to get what you need
C
ontrol what you can, including your choices, reactions, and resources
A
sk for help and information when necessary
T
ake time for self-care, to self-soothe, to self-nurture
E
ducate yourself by doing your own research
You can follow these simple self-advocacy steps to enhance your health and well-being by getting your needs met appropriately, which will enable you to be whole and live fully — be wellthy.
For more information on advocacy, check out this episode of The Glen Alex Show, What You Need to Know About Hospital Errors and Advocacy on Youtube, iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and your favorite podcast platform.
Then visit GlenAlex.com to order your copy of Glen’s 3x award-winning book, Living In Total Health, and to request your complimentary consultation with Glen.