Follow these self care tips and routines that will transform and improve your life!
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Life can become incredibly stressful sometimes, and just because we’re young doesn’t mean that we’re immune to the pressures that everything brings. It’s so easy to get lost in the day-to-day situations that bring us down, but it’s so important to take a step back as often as we can (preferably every day!) and take some self care measures for ourselves so that we’re refreshed and can be the best versions of ourselves!
All of these self care methods can be used whether you’re away at school, employed, or unemployed. Wherever we are in our life, taking care of ourselves is SO important because it’s impossible to thrive when you’re running on empty.
Below you’ll find a list of the best tried and true self care measures so that you can transform yourself and live the best life that you can live!
18 self care ideas to live your best life
1. Treat yourself to a treat
One of the easiest ways to make your soul happy is to treat yourself to something yummy. We’re always too caught up in watching what we eat, but there’s something really enjoyable about throwing caution to the wind and thoroughly enjoying some of our favorite snacks and drinks.
Another idea is for the next time you’re at the grocery store, pick up something indulgent from the bakery counter that you haven’t tried yet but have always wanted to. You just might discover your new fave!
2. Have an at home spa day
Cozy up in your comfiest bath robe, light a new candle, turn on your favorite relaxing music, and spend a few hours pampering yourself.
Give yourself a mani pedi, enjoy a good sugar scrub, rock your best face mask, and enjoy the vibes so that you can fully relax. Here are a few of my favorite DIY spa day products:
3. Have a movie marathon
Schedule in a few hour chunk of time to sit back on your couch and do absolutely nothing other than watching a few of your favorite movies with some of your favorite snacks.
Go all out on the popcorn, candy, and chocolate and turn your brain off while you enjoy fun movies like Bridesmaids and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
4. Disconnect from your phone
Setting your phone to Do Not Disturb for a few hours can really help to clear your mind. We don’t realize how much our attention is pulled to our device every time we get a notification, feel bored, or just want to kill a few minutes.
Disconnect from the outside world and you’ll feel far more refreshed very quickly
5. Journal
I hadn’t realized how effective journaling was for the mind until I gave it a shot myself. It does your mind a world of good to just write down your thoughts and see where the page takes you.
I read Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies (highly recommend!) and one of the early chapters talks about writing 3 pages of anything you want to write about every single morning. The goal is to just sit down and write.
I tried it, and the effect that it had on me was unbelievable. I found that writing in a journal improved my anxiety more than anything else I’ve tried because I was allowed to jot down any and all anxious thoughts that I had every single morning, and then for the rest of the day my mind felt more clear. If an anxious thought popped in, I would remind myself that I could write about it the next day, and my mind would move on to something else because I had built in a specific window for those types of thoughts and feelings during each day instead of letting them consume my day.
You can try The Five Minute Journal:
Or you can write freestyle with a ruled notebook journal:
6. Meditate
People who meditate swear by meditation, and there’s a very good reason for that. Practice your breathing and mindfulness and your peace and calm will follow.
You can use a free app like The Mindfulness App and they’ll guide you through and get you started on your journey
7. Practice gratitude
Thankful people are happier people. We’re all in different places and stages of our lives, but finding 3 things every morning to be grateful for will start your day on the right note and even if not so good things pop up throughout the day, you can think back to your 3 thoughts and remember that there is still light in your life.
Good Days Start With Gratitude
8. Dim the lights and listen to your favorite music
Set a relaxing mood in the room with fairy lights, a candle, and turn on your favorite tunes so you can just completely mellow out and enjoy where you are. It’s truly one of the most peaceful things you can do
OR
If you’re in need of your spirits boosted instead of mellowed out, throw on some loud music that will get you pumped up, throw your hair up, and dance it out. No one is there watching you, so shake it until you feel energized again!
9. Exercise
Whenever I’m not feeling great, I know that by moving my body and getting active, I’ll be able to release those endorphins that everyone loves and will always feel immediately better.
Whichever form of activity you prefer, get yourself to do it for at least 10 minutes and you’ll see your mood improve! After 10 minutes, call it a day if you want or keep going and see how good you feel after another 20
10. Read a book
Settle in for the evening with a new book to escape into. Whether you love romance, thrillers, fantasy, or motivational books – pick one up and get cozy on the couch while reading.
You can browse all of the current best sellers on Amazon and you just might find your new fave while getting in some you time!
A few that I’ve loved lately are Untamed, The Guest List, and Where the Crawdads Sing
If you have a Kindle or the Kindle app, I also wrote 8 Amazing Websites To Download Free eBooks
Related: 10 Books That Will Change Your Life
11. Bake your favorite treat or cook your favorite meal
A lot of people find the act of baking and cooking relaxing, and it can definitely be nice to section off a bit of time to yourself to just zone out in the kitchen and create something just for you.
Try out a new recipe, or put together your favorite meal that you don’t get to have often enough
12. Clean your living space
A tidy environment is a tidy mind, and spending half an hour cleaning up your home and putting the clutter back where it belongs can free up your mind for other things and make the rest of your day so much more enjoyable
13. Relax in a bath
Grab a candle, some music, and bubble bath or a bath bomb and relax the evening away
Mini Heart Bath Bombs from SeasideOrganicsNS on Etsy
14. Call a loved one
Phone calls seem to be a dying form of communication, but there’s something incredibly comforting about calling a family member or friend and hearing their voice when you haven’t for a while. Even a short phone call can make you feel so much better
15. Order takeout
Have an indulgent night in and order your favorite food for one. You are absolutely worth treating yourself to your favorite foods as often as you can manage, so enjoy it!
16. Watch a TED Talk
I’m a huge fan of TED Talks, and I think they’re the perfect way to learn something new while also sitting back and relaxing. Browse around the website to discover something you’re interested in, there really is something for everyone.
One of my favorites is My year of saying yes to everything with Shonda Rhimes, it’s incredibly motivating on a human level and hustle level
17. Host a night in with friends
Something simple like a girls night in can be so good for the soul.
Combine a bunch of the ideas above with a couple of your friends and enjoy each others company while relaxing together!
18. Put together a self care kit
A wonderful thing to do for future you is to put together a little basket or box with some of your favorite things.
Whenever you’re feeling the need to invest in some self care STAT, you can go to this kit and waste no time getting yourself to feel better and more refreshed.
A few ideas to add into the kit are: a couple chocolate bars & Sour Patch Kids, a candle, a few books, nail polish, a journal, your favorite DVDs, an old photo album, and whatever else makes you happy!
Hopefully you’ll find a few new self care ideas that you love, so you can practice a few of them and turn your self care into a regular routine that you do for yourself!
It’s never selfish to take care of your well being, and when you are feeling your best self, everything else in your life falls together a little more easily!
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