The biopsychosocial basics in our self-care tool chest.
Biopsychosocial Basics Self-Care Tool Chest Evaluation Checklist:
Physical Self-Care
- Sleep: Copious amounts of research shows that sleep is crucial for cognitive function, emotional regulation, and overall well-being. So how well are you tending to yours? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
- Nutrition: We’ve all heard it before but it bears repeating, consuming a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, healthy fats, nuts, and fish (such as the Mediterranean diet) is associated with a reduced risk of developing psychiatric symptoms like depression and anxiety. Conversely, a Western diet high in processed foods increases this risk. Is this a priority for you? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
- Physical Exercise: Regular exercise releases endorphins, which help reduce stress and improve mood. Studies have shown that individuals who engage in regular exercise experience fewer days of poor mental health and significant reductions in symptoms of depression and anxiety. What’s your relationship to movement like? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
- Regular Health Check-Ups: Did you know that routine health check-ups are positively associated with life satisfaction, positive emotions, and self-regulation? So tell me, do you prioritize this? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
Psychological Self-Care
- Focus Time (Dr. Siegel’s Suggestion): Focused time, a concept coined by Dr. Siegel, shares overlap with meditation training which has been shown to improve emotion and attention regulation, reduce anxiety, and enhance cognitive performance. How often are you doing this? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
- Time In (Dr. Siegel’s Suggestion): Time in, as I understand it, shares overlap with meditation programs which can reduce negative dimensions of psychological stress. Do you make time for this? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
- Down Time (Dr. Siegel’s Suggestion): Studies have shown that engaging in leisure activities that do not have specific goals, such as reading or napping, can lead to improved mental health. Do you do this? If so, how often? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
- Play Time (Dr. Siegel’s Suggestion): Depending on how you define “play time,” research has long shown that everyday creativity, which involves engaging in activities like drawing, cooking, or writing with a creative intent, is linked to positive psychological health. Do you do this? If so, how often? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
Social Self-Care
- Connecting Time (Dr. Siegel’s Suggestion): Social connections play a crucial role in psychological well-being. The presence of strong social networks and support can, as studies show us, reduce stress, enhance psychological well-being, and lower the risk of psychological distress, including depressive symptoms and anxiety. How often do you center this as a priority? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
- Support Systems: Longitudinal data from multiple studies have confirmed that social networks and support play a significant role in mental health maintenance over time. So how well are you centering and strengthening support systems in your own life? I do this:
- Rarely. I really don’t do this well unfortunately.
- Sometimes I do this but I’m pretty average at it.
- Often! I do this well mostly.
How can professional support help you build your self-care foundation?
While the biopsychosocial basics might seem straightforward, many people with relational trauma find that implementing them consistently requires therapeutic support to address the underlying beliefs and nervous system responses that make self-care feel dangerous or selfish.
Emotional Regulation
Emotional regulation is the capacity to manage the intensity, duration, and expression of your emotional responses. For relational trauma survivors, this capacity was often underdeveloped because the caregivers who should have modeled and co-regulated emotions were themselves dysregulated — or the source of the dysregulation.
A skilled therapist can help you understand why something as simple as regular meals or adequate sleep might trigger anxiety or guilt, tracing these reactions back to early experiences where basic needs weren’t safely met. In therapy, you’re not just learning about the importance of these foundations—you’re actually rewiring the neural pathways that have long equated self-neglect with safety.
This process often involves grieving what you didn’t receive in childhood while simultaneously learning to provide it for yourself now. For those feeling overwhelmed by the complexities of midlife while trying to establish these basics, exploring what makes life feel so challenging during your thirties and forties can help contextualize why building these foundations might feel particularly difficult at certain life stages.
The therapeutic relationship itself becomes a space where you can practice receiving care and support, gradually internalizing that you’re worthy of having your basic needs met—not as a reward for productivity, but simply because you exist and deserve wellness.
How can you reflect further on your biopsychosocial self-care basics?
Use this list of questions to think through how frequently or well you do each of your foundational self-care activities. After reviewing each section, consider the following prompts:
- What small changes can I make to improve any of these self-care routines?
- Which areas need more attention and how can I address them?
- What specific steps can I take to better incorporate these practices into my daily life?
By addressing these questions and integrating these basics, you can better fill “drawer one” of your self-care toolkit and enhance your overall well-being.
And now I’d love to hear from you:
Did this worksheet feel helpful to you as you begin to think about the biopsychosocial basics in your own self-care tool chest? Which of these tools do you do particularly well and which one might need a little more time and energy to develop? What might you choose to do to build that tool further?
And if you feel so inclined, please leave a message. Our community of 30,000 blog readers can benefit from your share and wisdom.
Here’s to healing relational trauma and creating thriving lives on solid foundations.
Warmly,
Annie
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The Social Dimension: Relationships as Biological Necessity
The “social” component of the biopsychosocial model is often the one that receives the least systematic attention — both in healthcare settings and in individual self-care practices. We’ve gotten better at sleep hygiene and exercise routines, but many driven women I work with have deeply depleted social foundations: few close friendships, limited community, relational connections that are broad but not deep.
This is a biological problem as much as a relational one. The research on social connection and health is striking in its consistency. John Cacioppo, PhD, professor of psychology at the University of Chicago and author of Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection, documented how chronic loneliness produces measurable changes in cardiovascular function, immune function, sleep physiology, and cognitive functioning. The absence of adequate social connection isn’t just emotionally uncomfortable — it is, at the physiological level, a stressor.
