Self-care. Fill your cup. Look after yourself first so you can look after others. You've probably heard it a million times, especially if you're an anxious/stressed/busy woman. But the thing is - everyone keeps harping on about it because it's so dang important.
It's not just a nice to have, it's a need to have.
So I'm sharing my top self-care tips that long include long, expensive massages or a trip to a picture perfect hut in the Maldives...
When it comes to self-care, I'm a fan of whatever feels good in the moment. Whatever helps you to care for yourself.
1. Nutrition / Hydration
You might wonder what nutrition and hydration has to do with self-care, but fueling and nourishing our bodies adequately is crucial to helping things run effectively. If you're fatigued, dehydrated or lacking nutrients then you may be more prone to stress and anxiety. Ensure you're making time to eat adequate meals and frequently drinking water (at least 1-2litres per day).
When you're busy or stressed it can be easy to forget to eat and drink. Try to support yourself by having small, easy snacks like protein balls or whole fruit and a large water bottle around the house. Sometimes it can even be helpful to have multiple water bottles around the house if you're someone who forgets to drink water.
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2. Body
Just like nourishing the inside of your body, it can also be an act of self-love and self-care to look after your body and appearance. This could be as simple as going for a walk each day or participating in your exercise of choice. It can also include your general appearance such as wearing clothes that make you feel motivated, doing your hair/makeup if it helps you to feel more put together for the day, changing your hair style or colour and anything else that makes you feel good in the skin you're in.
Check out these Glow Drops which hydrate your your skin and create a subtle glow, while also infused with a special anxiety blend of essential oils...
3. Routines
Sometimes self-care can be as simple as waking up and having a morning tea/coffee, or reading 3 pages of your latest book, or doing your skincare routine before bed. Little routines and habits that help you to look after yourself and fill your cup can be infused throughout the day.
I recommend creating a list of all the little things that make you feel more positive, motivated and focused. Fresh flowers on the table, dinner with your partner once a month, taking your vitamins, doing something new with the kids on the weekend...keep your list nearby and include some of these things in your weekly planning or daily non-negotiables.
Check out the Positive Mindset Planner that supports you to amplify your schedule by clicking here...
4. Environment
It's common to think your surroundings are just the way they are and rarely consider your ability to change things. Your house or workplace is where you spend the majority of your time, so how are you making it supportive of your self-care? Does your furniture need to be re-arranged or upgraded? Do you need to cull a bunch of clothes from your wardrobe that stress you out whenever you open the cupboard? Do you need to get a new set of pajamas that help you to wind down and shift into a better headspace for sleep?
Consider what parts of your environment make you feel dull, unhappy, overwhelmed or resentful - and ask yourself how you could make some changes as an act of self-care.
5. Social/Community
This one is rarely thought about when it comes to self-care, but the people you surround yourself with can have such a huge impact on your thoughts and emotions - especially if you're an empath or highly sensitive person. If people around you are negative, stressed, angry or disrespectful then it can impact how you feel about yourself and your situation.
Also known as energy vampires, these people can suck the life from you and leave you feeling depleted. Consider how you feel after spending time with particular people in your life and evaluate if this is positively or negatively impacting you. It might be time to do a little clean up of who you spend the majority of your time with, or create some new boundaries to better protect your energy. This might look like saying no to someone when you don't feel up to hanging out, asking your partner to help more around the house, trying a new hobby/activity where you can connect with like-minded people or removing old friends from your contact list or Facebook friend list.
I hope these help you to take stock of different areas where self-care can play a huge part in improving stressful situations and give you some ideas to increase your self-care practices and reduce your stress.
Michelle xx