admin_website ‘Fill YOUR cup first’. The first time I read this in a book, it sounded very selfish. Synonymous to ‘loving yourself’, it sounded so wrong.
I strongly held the belief that we must sacrifice for others, and I lived by this. Even if it meant struggling and stretching myself on all levels – emotionally, mentally and physically. Sacrificing for other people and their happiness was the right and ‘Muslim’ thing to do.
That was until I began to challenge this belief along with many other beliefs I held and began to ask why I held them and what purpose they served.
God Almighty created me, like all the billions of souls created and we took our place in this world when we manifested into our physical bodies for a set time and purpose. We are a spiritual being having a physical experience.
Each and every one of us is unique and special. Don’t let anyone especially your own negative self-chatter tell you otherwise.
This body of ours is the only one we get in this lifetime. We can’t exchange it in once it starts getting rusty or worn out. As well as the outer physical form, we have an emotional, mental and spiritual dimension to us. When we are in harmony with all these parts of us, we are living the way God intended for us. We are living from a place of complete peace and joy and only then can we really benefit others.
When we neglect ourselves and our health and well-being, we are stretching ourselves too thin and it is only a matter of time, that some part of us, whether, spiritual, emotional, mental or physical will start showing signs of weakness. You have to take care of all those aspects of yourself and fill your cup first so that when our cup starts to overflow you can give to others. We need our cup filling first as we have to take care of number one in order for us to be of service to others, whether that be your family, community or humanity.
It’s like the analogy of being told by the aircraft attendant to put the oxygen mask on yourself first before helping others. If you’re dead – you are of little use to anyone!
That does not make you selfish. You recognise first and foremost the gift of life that God has bestowed to you and how this is a trust to be valued and taken care of. It is your duty to take care of your life first and to make sure that you are well on all levels in order to truly serve others and then help them to value themselves.
For many years I was living a very unhealthy existence. As a mother, wife, daughter and a Muslim, I had picked up beliefs from my early years which spelt out to me that in order to be valued and to be seen as ‘good and decent’, I had to sacrifice my own needs for others.
I saw my own mother doing this and subconsciously I was following in the same footsteps. As a busy home educating mother, wife and an active member of society, I began to develop an extremely unhealthy lifestyle. Looking back now, I was walking too close to having an emotional and mental breakdown. I recognise how easily we can fall into that trap of ‘busy being busy’ but not actually ‘living life’.
Through my personal journey of ‘self-discovery’, I have realised that there are many layers that need uncovering and questioning so that our true self can come forth to shine the way God Almighty intended for every one of us.
Learn to fill your own cup first as you can’t give out of an empty cup! What pours out of you is what you can give to others. To start your journey of growth, book an Exploration Call with Sayyida today!
