When I was in elementary and middle school, I was hardly ever sick. As a result, I rarely had to stay home from class. However, my sister was the opposite, and I was jealous (yup, I wanted to stay home so badly that I was willing to be sick for it!). So my mom gave me permission to take one “mental health day” per quarter. She’d call in sick for me, and I’d snuggle up on the couch in front of the TV with some cookies and forget about school for the day.
Once I started high school and college, I stopped taking days off—it was more stressful to miss all of the day’s lessons and homework assignments than to be in school! However, now I’m fortunate enough to be “working from home” for the next few weeks (or more—but let’s hope the job search turns up something soon!). As a result, I have the luxury of being able to take “self-care days” (as I prefer to call them) again.
Last weekend wasn’t a great one. I caught a cold, gave it to E, and we didn’t get done half of what we needed to. A close friend received some terrible news about a family member. I tossed and turned for most of Sunday night and woke up late, feeling all out of sorts. So yesterday, I decided to throw in the towel and take care of myself!
However, you don’t just want to waste your self-care day scrolling through social media. That’s way too easy to do these days and not particularly restful. So, I took the chance to do some things that I hadn’t done in a while.
Easy Ways to Practice Self-Care At Home
Creative writing. Once we reach adulthood, many of us become so focused on productivity that spending our time writing something that will never make it to the Internet feels like a waste of time. But exercising our imaginations only contributes positively to our ability to think creatively, our happiness, and—ironically—our future productivity!
Reading some articles I’d bookmarked a while ago. We pin, pin, pin away, but how often do we actually get around to clicking through the links and reading? Lately I’ve been going through the pins on my Green living & minimalism board and collecting new ideas for our minimalist journey.
Working out. My sleep has been less than stellar lately, and I know it’s because I haven’t been active enough. So, I found a killer at-home cardio workout online and had a nice sweat—it felt amazing!
Baking. I made a loaf of Kristy’s healthy banana bread and a batch of her paleo double chocolate muffins and then of course had to sample the finished products 😉 (highly recommend both recipes!). I haven’t baked the afternoon away in ages and I’d forgotten how much I love it!
Going for a walk. I posted about it on Instagram yesterday–E and I have finally found a lovely nature preserve near our house for walks. I can’t tell you how much I’ve missed having a natural space to escape to. If you don’t have a space like that—find one! Breathing in fresh air and enjoying the silence does your body and mind both a world of good.
Watching a movie. I hardly ever watch TV, but lately I’ve been in the mood for it. Suggestions: in the past couple of weeks, we’ve watched What to Expect When You’re Expecting (one of my favorites!), No Impact Man, Moana, and An Inconvenient Truth. Next up, we’re finishing the most recent season of Sherlock!
This morning, I woke up feeling refreshed and ready to get back to work! It’s amazing how much of a difference just one self-care day can make.
How Do You Practice Self-Care?
But I’ve got a question for you: how do you incorporate self-care into your everyday? Which habits do you think make the biggest difference in your wellbeing?