Personal self-care can include spa visits, massages, manicures, pedicures, or skincare routines. Kigen says self-care does not have to be expensive; it can be as simple as spending time with friends.
According to Dr. Karau, massage can have positive effects when performed by a qualified professional.
Sleep
Do you go to bed late? Do you sleep for at most five hours? Do you sleep intermittently? You should rethink how you get your daily dose of shut-eye.
Dr. Karau says, "Your body heals and rejuvenates during sleep. But more importantly, your brain cleans itself during sleep at night, not during the day. So, if you've got to prevent early onset dementia, or challenges with your brain health, and of course stress, depression, mild cognitive impairment, then you must take sleep seriously."
Optimum sleep, he says, lasts between six and eight hours. "And it should be continual sleep."
Not only that: you should have it at night. Why? "Fluctuation of the hormones in the body between day and night follow circadian rhythm; you experience the most satisfying sleep at night."
If you struggle sleeping, Dr. Karau says, it could be because you don't practice sleep hygiene.
He says: "Sleep hygiene means how somebody sleeps, where they sleep, what they interact with just before or as they get to bed.
"The bedroom should only be for sleep. If possible, there should be no gadgets around. And, sleeping time should be regularised: go to bed at the same time every evening.
"You should sleep on a mattress that can support the back properly, keeping you safe from spine discomfort, muscle pain, and stretching of nerves."
Go on vacation or just rest
As the country was coming out of lockdown and businesses were slowly coming out of hibernation, Khasina, as the sole proprietor of her company, was up and running.
The constant barrage of work that needed to be done and deadlines that needed to be met left her reeling in burnout.
She recalls: "I was experiencing high levels of stress as I was rebuilding. I started feeling physically exhausted, with frequent headaches and difficulty sleeping. Emotionally, I felt overwhelmed and anxious, which affected my ability to focus and make good decisions."
This experience left her drained and disconnected. Which was ironic because she was working hard to achieve great results, but burnout is not something you overcome through sheer will. "It was a clear reminder of the importance of listening to my body. Since then, I have made conscious efforts to incorporate more rest in my schedule."
All systems, whether biological or mechanical, says Kigen, need time to cool off.
"Even machines do. Your computer does. You, more than other systems, need rest. If you don't rest, then you will experience burnout and stress that will lower your productivity and will challenge your mental health," she says.
According to Kigen, you should take time off to rest at least twice a year.
"Resting means doing nothing other than sleeping, taking in the scenery, no phone calls, no laptop, just breathing and maybe meditating and enjoying the rest.
Resting can be done during a vacation. Or, "just go up country and take many nature walks. Just don't do any work that requires your physical or mental energy."
Regular pap smears and breast self-examination
The two leading cancers among women are breast and cervical cancer.
Dr. Elly Odongo, a gynaecological oncologist, stresses early screening.
"For breast cancer, self-breast examination is simple and cost-free. Women of reproductive age should do it monthly after menstruation. Look for lumps, skin texture changes, pain, or asymmetry."
"For cervical cancer, the deadliest cancer among women in Kenya, we advise that they go for Pap smear tests regularly. The test will pick the cancer early, when it can be treated fully and successfully," he says.
Plan your motherhood ahead of time
Dr. Kireki Omanwa, president of the Kenya Obstetrical and Gynaecological Society (KOGS), advises women to prepare for pregnancy early.
Pregnancy lasts nine months and requires preparation for better maternal and child health outcomes. Eating iron- and folic-acid-rich foods helps prevent birth defects such as spina bifida and hydrocephalus.
Women are born with all their eggs. "A woman is most fertile between the ages of 24 and 35 years. Before 24, her body may not be mature enough to carry a pregnancy, and past 35, her fertility may have decreased, thereby making it difficult to conceive naturally," Dr. Omanwa says.
Motherhood can also be achieved through adoption. Regardless of the path, motherhood requires preparation.