First of all, let me begin by saying that I am not perfect. There are moments when I forget to do these things and I completely lose my mind. I am human. It happens. When your life is spinning out of control and all hell is breaking loose, you forget to take care of yourself. I get it. I also know that I am at my best when I do these things. Self-care is not easy. I know that I struggle with putting myself first, even second most of the time. I usually put myself last on the list of people to take care of. I hope that this list will help you find some new ways to practice self-care and make sure your needs are met. Don’t feel guilty for taking time for yourself. You can’t help anyone else if you aren’t in a good place! Here are my 10 simple self-care tips:

 

1. Take a little time for yourself every day. Anything that gives you time to think, reflect, process, and feel at peace with whatever you have going on in your life. Lock yourself in your bathroom, go for a walk or drive, read a book, meditate, listen to music or a podcast, write in a journal…something that gives you inner peace, even if it is just for a short period of time.

 

2. Speaking of writing in a journal…have you tried journaling? I have found that this gives me time to work through my feelings and process my emotions better than anything. My life can be quite the hot mess, so I do this often. I started this blog in July 2020 and it has helped tremendously. If you aren’t ready to put your life out in the open, they have a lot of cool journals on Amazon that can help! My best friend got me the Let That Shit Go journal, and it is amazing! Ca-Caw, Motherfucker (one of my favorite lines in the journal). To read my blog on journaling and the simple ways it can change your life, click this link: https://www.outrageandgrace.blog/blog/journaling

 

3. Pick up a new hobby. Photography saved me. No joke. It helped me rediscover my love for photography, it is the reason I met my boyfriend and so many other amazing people on Instagram, and it gets me outside and moving my body. I always feel better after a day outside with my camera. It makes me forget what is stressing me out. I even love editing photos. Everything about photography makes my soul happy. This is one of my personal favorite ways to practice self-care!

 

4. Be mindful of what you put in your body. Again, I am not perfect. I fall into the eating too much fast food and consuming way too much sugar category often. I also know how horrible I feel when I do these things. It is easier to go through the drive-thru when you are out, when you don’t feel like cooking, when nothing in the refrigerator or freezer looks appetizing, when you are really craving fries….the list never ends. This is something that I want to work on. I feel so much better when I am eating healthier and I cut down on the amount of sugar I put into my body.

5. Get enough sleep! I feel like my life should be a book of what not to do. I am a horrible sleeper. I have to work extremely hard to sleep more than 5 hours a night. Most people require much more sleep than this. I am lucky that I can go a day or two without any sleep and still function. I do not recommend this and I only do it when I absolutely cannot sleep. This usually only happens when my mom is very sick and in the hospital. I can’t sleep in strange places and when I get more stressed than usual, my sleeping habits get even worse. I feel so much better when I am able to get at least 5 hours of sleep a night. This does require me to go to bed a little earlier than I would like, turn the brightness on my phone all the way down about an hour before bed, and to use the blue light filter. I also take sleep gummies about 30 minutes to an hour before I go to sleep, and I recently found an awesome podcast that helps me relax. I will post more about that in a future blog.

6. Move your body. This doesn’t have to be anything crazy. Just getting outside a few days a week and going for a walk can do wonders for your mental health. Walk the dog, meet a friend at a park, chase the kids around the backyard. Find an at-home workout that you enjoy. Start small and work your way up. Do what you can!

7. Don’t feel bad for saying no. I still struggle with this one occasionally. It is okay to not show up to every event you are invited to. It is okay to need time to sleep in, destress, whatever you need. You don’t have to please everyone. Take care of your needs first! I understand how stressful it is when you only have two days off a week to do everything that you need to get done. After being gone for ten hours a day at work, you barely have enough time to take care of the dogs (or kids if you have them), cook dinner, eat, and then shower before it is time to go to bed again so that you can get up and do it all again the next day. Weekends are essential in me being able to get anything done. I need my weekends. Losing one whole day, maybe even two, throws me off for the next week. Especially if I am losing those days to something that stresses me out or that doesn’t allow me any time to myself.

8. Spend time with your favorite people. Spending time with my best friend always makes me feel better. We get Limeades from Sonic, go to lunch or dinner, and talk about life while driving around aimlessly. It's the best therapy session ever. We always end up laughing about something, and laughter is a huge stress reliever. So is getting to talk about your life in a judgment free zone. Best friends are what get us through this life. I am lucky enough to have the best one in the world. I'm not even kidding. She is amazing. Obviously, this was all before Covid. I miss my best friend so much! I am hoping we can safely have a Limeade day soon.

9. Be kind to yourself! Life is hard and you are doing the best you can. That is more than enough! Keep working hard and doing your best. Don’t stress over not being able to solve every problem in the universe. Don’t get upset if you had to put off chores for a day or two. Give yourself some grace and be proud of yourself for surviving. For continuing to show up no matter what. For refusing to give up. Be proud of yourself for being the amazing badass human that you are!

10. Practice self-care Sunday. Or any day that you have mostly free and do something relaxing, or nothing at all. Light some candles, take a hot shower or bath, catch up on your favorite show, take a nap, put on a face mask, wear pajamas or comfy clothes all day, paint, color, sit outside in the sun, go get your hair and nails done, get a massage, whatever makes you feel relaxed. Make this day about you as much as possible and treat yourself!

I hope that these 10 simple self-care tips will help you find new ways to take care of yourself. Life can be difficult and it is important that you don’t forget to allow yourself some time to take a step back and relax. Today is Sunday, and I plan on taking this day to practice self-care in a few ways found on this list. I wish you the best of luck on your self-care journey!

To read my blog about simple ways journaling can change your life, click this link: https://www.outrageandgrace.blog/blog/journaling