*This post contains affiliate links.
This self isolation period has been an adjustment. Learning how to help my kids with online learning, rearranging our schedules due to my husband’s work and not being able to spend time with friends. The first couple of weeks it was really easy to get caught up in taking care of my kids and my husband and forget to take care of myself. It quickly caught up to me so I knew I needed to start giving myself love like I was to everyone else. Here are some of the things I did for self care that helped me fill my cup!
First Self Care Idea: Face masks
This is one of my favorite ways to practice self care. I love that my face feels soft when I am done. Also the face masks I tend to use smell amazing which helps with getting me to relax. Also knowing that doing a face mask is easy but will also do good for my face is just a couple of the great bonuses. If you have not found a face mask you like here is one of my favorites:
Second: Bubble Baths and Candles
This way of practicing self care is one that I like to combine with the first. Putting a face mask on while soaking in the tub to candle light is my idea of the ultimate pamper. I also like to pour myself a delicious drink and listen to a podcast while I lay back and enjoy my relaxing time to myself. To take this relaxation to the next level I like to turn my bath into a bubble bath. My favorite product for bubble baths are Bubble Bars from Lush. They make so many bubbles and can be used for more than one bath.
Third: Waking up First
This is some self care I just started doing the past few days but it is already helping my days go a lot better. My kids all get up around 7 am so I get up at 6 am. This gives me an hour to do whatever I want by myself before I have to be thrown into mom mode for the next 13+ hours. I usually go out into the living room, turn on the pantry light so it isn’t too dark. Then I turn on a podcast (my current favorites are “Ask Iliza Anything” and “The Office Ladies”) on my phone and listen to it with my Apple Airpods . I then check my social media accounts or play a game. As I get more used to waking up early I want to incorporate more productive things like working out, getting ready for the day and meditating.
The thing that this self care helps with the most is that I am able to spend the beginning of my day taking care of myself. When I don’t wake up early my morning looks a lot different. Instead of being able to relax and spend time doing something I enjoy to start my day, it instead starts with the kids waking me up by jumping on top of me or because they got in a fight. Then right away I am put into mom mode and typically start my day stressed and annoyed. I much prefer sacrificing an hour of sleep to start my day off in a better way so I can be better for me and my family.
Fourth: Working on Goals
This self care idea is one that I think will help the most once we come out of this crazy time. If we are just standing still this whole time, not making goals to work towards than we will come out of this the same place we were going in. Making goals will help us come out of this stronger and accomplished. It doesn’t have to be big goals, even small ones will help you feel like you are not just sitting at home these weeks/months wasting this time.
A couple of my goals are to get up early, drink 100 oz of water everyday, maintain a clean house, and blog more. If you think of some goals you want to work on comment them down below and we can help cheer each other on!
Fifth: Making Better Food Choices
This is another one of my goals but it goes well with self care. Being home more has been making eating healthy and not overeating a harder thing for me. As I sat down to think of what things I wanted to do to practice self care this was one I knew was even more important to do during this time. Food can effect us in so many ways, positive or negative. I know that when I eat crap I feel like crap so in order to enjoy life at this time I need to treat my body right by feeding it right.
Sixth: Drinking More Water
This is similar to making better food choices. The more water I drink the better I feel. When I am not drinking enough water (it is typically recommended that you drink half your weight in oz of water, so if you are 150 lbs you should be drinking at least 75 oz of water) I feel swollen and when I am drinking enough water I feel lighter. Water is so crucial for our health and the wellness of our bodies. Knowing I am doing something that is good for me helps to remind myself that I am important enough to take care of.
Seventh: Self Care by Going Outside
This is a hard one for me. I am very much a homebody. I do not like bugs, being hot, dirt, grass, basically a lot of what the outside has. So my desire to go outside a lot of the time is very low. But my mood is made better once I spend even a short amount of time outside. Vitamin D really does a lot of good. So I have been spending time in our backyard, sitting on a chair while I let my kids run around. They get to release some energy and I get some good time in the sun.
Eighth: Having Daily Quiet Time
Along with my hour in the morning, I also like to have time set up when everyone has their own quiet time. This typically happens when my toddler is down for his nap. This is the time when I am able to get cleaning or blogging done. My older kids have their screen time for the day. Then when my toddler is awake quiet time is over. This just makes it easier to be able to get things done without adding the extra stress of a toddler. He tends to follow at my heals or is off in another room making another mess.
Ninth: Spend time doing a hobby
This is another thing that I try to find time to do during quiet time or at the end of the day. It usually is something that helps give me a creative outlet. I have also been having fun trying new things so I can find new hobbies. One of my favorite hobbies right now is scratch art. I love this scratch art book:
Last Self Care Idea: Get ready for the day
This is self care I am working on doing better at. Most days I put on clothes and do something with my hair, usually just put it in a pony tail. I am wanting to start getting ready right when I get up. I also want to implement doing more when I get ready like doing my hair and doing limited makeup. When I do get ready I can always tell a difference in how I feel. I feel more confident and ready to get things done.
These are all self care ideas I have done and know help with filling my cup. There is only so much you can give to others if you are not giving to yourself. What have you been doing to practice self care during this time? What new self care practices do you want to start practicing?
Leave a Reply