"Self-care is how you take your power back."
-Lalah Delia
With the kids back in school and us back to the normal daily grind, we thought this would be the perfect time to talk about the importance of developing a self-care routine. Often, we spend so much time loving on everyone else that we forget about ourselves and end up depleted. It's harder to fill ourselves up from empty than it is to continually fill smaller spots. This month, we've put together a list of ideas for ways you can fill yourself - both conventional and unconventional. Our favorite way to choose is to write them each on a slip of paper, fold them in half, and pull one out of a bowl. This way, we aren't always going back to one particular activity, but trying new things in the process...but you can choose however you would like.
Self-Care Ideas for All of Us
Take a 5-minute box-breathing break - this is one of the easiest, yet most effective breathing techniques, even for people who have never done breathwork. Five minutes of this and you'll feel like a new person!
Try a 10-minute mindfulness meditation
Put on some headphones and listen to music - pick some of your favorites or pull up one of our many thoughtfully curated playlists.
Go on a nature walk or try out walking meditation.
Find somewhere near you to take a yoga or tai chi class - you can also find instructional videos on YouTube, but going to an in-person class is a whole different type of relaxation.
Blast the tunes and take a 15-minute dance break!
Spend some quality time with your bestie. One good conversation with the bestie always makes everything a thousand times better, are we right?
Make art - it doesn't matter whether it's painting, sculpting, decoupage, or whatever other medium you love or want to try. The act of creating something is deeply therapeutic to the soul.
TAKE A NAP! That's right - all of our deepest healing takes place while we are sleeping, so grab a nap and bliss out.
Try out an aggressive sport - hear us out here. There is something so healing about punching a bag, kicking a dummy, shooting things with paintballs, or even just learning the movements to such actions. It makes you feel strong and capable while diminishing your stress level. Kung Fu, kickboxing, archery, you could even go old-school with some TaeBo. Pick your poison and start swinging!
Enjoy a drink with electrolytes - trust us, they make everything better.
Learn how to intentionally brew tea and enjoy a cup in a cozy chair with a book.
Take a bubble bath
Have an at-home spa day (and we know a place where you can get some goodies for that!)
Catch up on your TBR pile
Take 5 minutes for your mindfulness journal
Looking for something to do with your kids? Try the Legends app. This is a confidence and self-concept building program that is phenomenal! It takes five minutes a day - you sit down with your kiddo, watch a short video about an inspiring person, then you learn how to apply some confidence-building skill illustrated by the video.
It's so important to take time for yourself and really be mindful of your own body and experience. Try out any one or all of these! Come up with some ideas of your own to add to your bowl of self-nurturing activities. The more you do, the easier it'll get and the more ideas you'll get of your own. Once you really start rolling, we'd LOVE to hear from you about your favorites!
Happy nurturing, Bebs!
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Beautiful advice! All that is very useful at this time of year, or ANY time!