What is self care? It’s defined as the practice of taking an active role in protecting your own well being and happiness. Who can’t get on board with that? It sounds simple enough. For some reason, we seem to make it way too complicated. There are so many talks about self care. How to get it, what it looks like, what it isn’t. I believe in keeping things simple. Take care of you in every way you can. That’s self care. Want some simple suggestions? Of course you do. Boom! Keep reading.
I’ve got you covered
Have a cup of coffee, tea or smoothie (whatever your thing is) make a cup and take the time to enjoy it. I have a ritual of brewing a cup of tea. I love a good loose leaf tea. After I brew it, I add honey and cream. I make sure I sit down to take my time and enjoy it.
Another thing that’s been working for me is meditating. I do it in five or ten minute sessions. It’s not a daily thing for me yet. At least twice a week I sit down and take some time to just be. It’s good. It’s calming.
If you follow me in this space or on Instagram, you know that I’m all about working out. It’s a huge part of my self care routine. I work out six days a week and those sweat sessions set my day off right every.time.
Taking a break from social media is never a bad idea. If we’re being honest, it can be a huge time suck and sometimes it can make you feel like you’re not doing enough. We’ve all heard that it’s only the highlight reel and the no one is sharing their failures. It’s easy to get sucked in anyway and feel less than. Don’t. You’re amazing.
If you’re like me, there’s a furry love bug hanging around your house. Ours is named Lola. She’s a maltipoo (we think). What we know is that she is full of love and snuggles. She also knows when someone in my family is sick or sad and she turns on the extra love. I always feel better after a good snuggle session with my fur baby girl.
More Self Care Ideas
Laugh. Recently, I had a cold. I found myself out of energy and stuck on the couch. I definitely wasn’t feeling like myself. You know what made me feel better? I went on a Kevin Hart spree. I found some of his comedy specials and a Netflix movie and laughed myself better.
Another thing you know if you hang around these parts is that I LOVE to read. It’s absolutely part of m self care routine. I’m a writer and word nerd. Reading just makes me happy. I love to share what I’ve read. Sometimes it’s learning new things or just for the enjoyment of being taken away on the adventure of someone else’s life.
I’m a big fan of getting some air. I’ll lace my shoes up, pop some music in my ears or a podcast and just get outside and take a walk. It’s a great way to clear my head AND get some steps in.
Quality time with your favorite people also counts as self care. Who said self care has to be done alone. Getting in a catch up sesh with your friends over the phone or over dinner counts. Those times that we get to just be ourselves without tittles with the people who love us – feeds us and fuels us.
Definitely do these
Stare at yourself in the mirror. Give yourself a long look in the mirror and instead of pointing out things you want to change, notice all the things you love. Appreciate the body that has carried you thus far. It’s a beautiful thing. Acknowledge it and smile bonus points if you say I love you!
Take it one step further and write a letter to yourself. Mention all the things you love about you, all the things you’ve overcome and what you’ve accomplished. Pull this letter out when you’re having one of those days to remind you who you really are and what you’re capable of.
How’s that for self care? What are you going to do from this list?
