Self-care was the buzz term of last year and although it seems to have been hijacked by those pesky marketeers, we shouldn’t ignore it as just another trend.
Self-care isn’t about being selfish. It’s not about spending loads of money on ‘self-care’ kits and doing fancy things to make ourselves feel good. It’s as simple as prioritising some time for the things that bring happiness and joy to our lives and not getting bogged down in the daily grind and busyness that we can become so absorbed and engulfed in.
I think we need to prioritise time for ourselves no matter our schedule, lifestyle or budget.
Here are some simple self-care ideas:
- Switch off your phone – I think social media has a lot to answer for when it comes to the negative impact of our wellbeing (don’t get me wrong, there are good sides to social media too!). But, constant comparison to others, only seeing the good going on in people’s lives, let alone the time wasted, means it can contribute to my feelings of low mood. I can find myself constantly scrolling through feeds, achieving nothing when I could be doing things that will benefit my mind.
- Get outside – How often do you look around when you’re outside? I don’t mean walk where we need to get to and look at what’s just in front of us – I mean get outside and walk without a purpose, look, see and breathe. These last couple of days have been glorious spring days but how in tune with the seasons and weather are we? Make it a conscious action.
- Exercise – if I don’t exercise it affects my mood and my body. I have to exercise to feel happy. Don’t get me wrong, I’m no exercise machine and I can make a million and one excuses not to change into my lycra, but it’s taken me thirty odd years to realise I need to exercise to feel happy – something about serotonin! I’ve recently discovered spinning. I like to run, I like to swim, I love pilates and yoga – but, it’s how they make me feel afterwards that I like the best.
- Take a bath – I’ve recently discovered my love of a good bath and I know they’re not that great for the environment, but I think an occasional bath can do wonders for the soul, especially filled with essential oils.
- Read a book – how often do you read a book? I’m really going to try and make a conscious effort to switch off the tv and pick up a book, whether it be fiction or non-fiction I’m gonna read more for sure.
- Meet up with friends – sometimes I think self-care sounds like it has to be a solo activity, but meeting up with friends definitely brings me joy and happiness. Another of the problems with social media is that we tend to think we know what’s going on in people’s lives just because we’ve read something they’ve posted, nah mate, we need to find out what’s really going on.
Let me know in the comments what things you do to look after yourself to ensure you’re functioning on all cylinders.
Veronica x
Welcome to Wrapped in Newspaper - a blog based around delicious recipes and mindful living. I'm Ronnie and the recipes I create here are centred around plants, you'll also find me posting about living mindfully to help us be our best selves for our health and the planet.
