Are you looking for self-care tips but feeling guilty dedicating time to yourself?
Even though most of your time & energy is spent giving everything you can to others?
I totally get it because I’ve been there…
But let me tell you… you cannot take care of others without taking care of yourself FIRST!
The old cliche of ‘you can’t pour from an empty cup’ is the truth!
When you begin to take care of you, using the incredible self-care tips in this post…
you’ll be more able to help the people around you in a positive way whilst maintaining your own health & wellness too!
I’m so pleased you’re reading this because it’s time for you to start looking after yourself.
After all, self-care is absolutely essential to living a healthy, full life.
If you’ve never done it before, it can be so hard to know where to start with self-care… there are so many self-care books available these days that the information can be well, overwhelming!
What is Self-Care Anyway?
Put simply, self-care activities are the things you do to take care of yourself!
There are so many self-care tips online but the truth is…
When it comes to self-care, there’s no ‘one size fits all’ activity!
For some people, the best self-care tips may include going for a run & getting a weekly massage…
For others, it may be as simple as taking a long hot bubble bath or reading a book.
The key to self-care is finding the activities that feel good to you.
It’s the activities that rejuvenate & reenergize you so you can live your life to the fullest.
When Should I Practice Self Care?
Self-care is something that you should be doing consistently.
It’s no good reading a book for a day & thinking ‘that’s my self-care done for the rest of the week, year, month etc’!
To feel the benefits of taking care of yourself… you need to be practicing self-care little & often!
A good way to begin is to take one self-care idea at a time and factor it into your daily routine…
It takes about 30-60 days for a new habit to form & once that first self-care activity has naturally transitioned into a regular habit for you, you can adopt another self-care idea into your daily routine.
What Self-Care Activity Should I Start With?
There really is no right answer to this question… the answer depends on you & what self-care activity you WANT to start first.
However…
We all have basic needs (as indicated in Maslow’s Triangle) that need to be met before we can be self-fulfilled… so if you’re lacking in one of the needs that sit at the base of the triangle, like lack of rest for example… it would be a good idea for you to start with a self-care activity that fulfills that need first… such as getting a night of decent sleep.
Here is an image of Maslow’s triangle so you can see what I mean.
The idea is that before the needs at the top of the triangle can be achieved, the ones at the bottom need to present first…
Easy Self-Care Tips
So now you understand the importance of self-care, let’s get started looking at some easy self-care tips that you can get started with straight away!
Have a look through the list & decide which one you want to try first & take steps to build it into your daily routine… starting today!
P.S. Remember to Click here or on the image below to quickly & easily save these ideas to Pinterest so you never lose them!
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1. Leave Your Phone Outside Your Bedroom
If you’re guilty of taking your phone to bed with you & end up scrolling your social media feeds & watching irrelevant videos of cat fails then try leaving your phone outside of the bedroom so you won’t be tempted to pick it up. According to one 2018 study, sleeping without smartphones has many positive impacts on your happiness & wellbeing including improving sleep, relationships & focus!
2. Get 7-9 Hours of Sleep
It’s common sense that we all need a good rest to get the most out of our days, but even though we know this, we don’t always take steps to ensure we get a good nights sleep. According to the National Sleep Foundation… most of us have forgotten what it feels like to be truly rested but recommend that most of us adults get between 7-9 hours of sleep every night.
3. Stop Over-Thinking
I’m sure you can understand that worrying about everything will inevitably take a toll on your wellbeing… in fact, research has suggested that worrying is a big factor in the onset of depression. If you’re struggling to stop yourself worrying about things you can’t control, I recommend reading this book by Gary John Bishop…
4. Keep a Journal
It takes less than 10 minutes a day to write in a journal but the benefits to your mental wellbeing are huge. According to Ballas, Paul, DO & Fraser, Marianne, MSN, RN journalling helps you to manage anxiety, reduce stress & cope with depression. I use my journal every morning to write out my tasks for the day & it really helps relieve the mental pressures of trying to remember everything & keeps me focussed!
Other great self-care ideas for your journal include:
- writing down 10 things you’re grateful for every day
- free writing or brain dumping
- to write down future goals
- collect quotes that inspire you
- to write down affirmations
5. Drink More Water
You already know that drinking 8 glasses of water per day is a reasonable goal to stay healthy & hydrated… but that’s easier said than done right? To help yourself drink more water try infusing your water with fruit to make your water extra refreshing or you could even use the drink water free app to track your daily intake… it really doesn’t matter how you get your water… just as long as you get it.
6. Watch Less TV
Statistics show that the average person in the USA watches 3 hours and 50 minutes of TV every day.. phew, that’s a lot of TV… if you do the calculations (and I’m no mathematician) it’s the equivalent of over 58 whole days per year! If you think back over the past few years of your life, would you say spending 58 days watching TV was worth your time? Watching less TV will help you focus on your life… in fact, I stopped watching TV when I was building my first blog & it has simply changed my life… if you’re interested in cutting back on your TV time… this article by Michael Pollock is definitely worth a read!
7. Eat Better
Eating better doesn’t mean following an ultra-strict diet… that’ll just make you miserable! But, eating good food that nourishes your body will help you to feel better both in body & mind… This article from Self will give you some great tips & tricks on how you can eat healthier!
8. Face Your Fears
Ok, that kinda sounds counter-intuitive to self-care, but if you think about it, facing your fears is the best way to get over them! It’s never going to be easy to face your fears but if you take small steps every day, your anxiety around your fears will naturally start to feel less intense… you can get some great tips on how to face your fears right here.
9. Take a 10 Minute Breather Every Day
Taking in nice deep breaths through your nose & out through your mouth for just 10 minutes a day has massive benefits for your mind & body that help you feel calm, centered & grounded… Benefits of deep breathing include detoxification, improved digestion & stress-relief.
10. Get Moving
Exercise is a brilliant way to start your self-care practice & will help improve both your physical & mental health. If like me, you aren’t a fan of running or going to the gym, you could try a simple yoga routine at home or even put on your favorite music & just dance around like nobodies watching!
11. Read More
There are so many good reasons to read more! Reading can open your mind to new ideas & opinions & improve your concentration but it’s also a great excuse for sitting in peace & having some much needed you time. Make time to read every night before you sleep… If you want to make use of your time spent driving or cooking dinner, you can even get Audible from Amazon which makes listening to books easy! Right now you can get 2 FREE audiobooks when you sign up with Audible allowing you to get started right away!
12. Get Outside
Getting out and about is a great way for you to practice self-care & better your health. Not only will the fresh air help you to feel re-energized, but the natural light will help elevate your mood & your vitamin D levels! While you’re out there, you can also take some time to really appreciate the beautiful world we live in!
13. Create A Mood Board
Use Pinterest or your Instagram grid to create a mood board full of the things that you love most. I’ve filled my mood board with all the things that excite me & get me motivated to work… like that swish car I want to own one day. But, whether its pics of your family, animals you love, the food you love or places you want to visit or have even visited already, your mood board should be full of the things that make your heart sing & get you going!
Tip: Pinterest has a great feature where you can set your board to private.
14. Meditate
Whether you choose to sit in silence to meditate or use a guided meditation, factoring meditation time into your self-care routine will give you many benefits including helping you to slow down, calm your mind and increase your levels of happiness. You can find out more on how to meditate here.
15. Travel More
Whether it’s a few days away in another city or a day trip to somewhere you’ve always wanted go, getting out and about will help you enjoy your time & open you up to new ideas & opportunities!
16. Celebrate the Small Wins
No matter how small you feel your achievements are, you should definitely take time every day to congratulate yourself on your small wins! It could be that you finally ticked off a task that has been sat on your to-do list for wayyyy too long or even that you took the time for self-care… writing out your small wins for the day in your journal is a great way to acknowledge them!
So There You Go…
It’s easy to sacrifice yourself & keep putting others first if that’s what you’ve done all your life but there comes a time when you have to think of yourself & start practicing self-care.
After all, you can’t pour from an empty cup 🙂
As you can see from these 16 easy self care-tips… it doesn’t have to be difficult to start incorporating some self-care activities into your life…
Simply pick one self-care activity and work it into your daily routine & keep going from there!
P.S. If you loved these self-care tips & want more, be sure to come over & follow me on Pinterest where I am hanging out all day sharing the best self-development & online business tips that you don’t want to miss!
