Adopting a self-care routine is another way to improve your overall state of living, especially in regard to your mental health. Self-care practice can vary greatly and throughout this post, I will be providing examples of how self-care may look differently. Self-care is essentially creating a healthier relationship with yourself. This relationship reduces stress, anxiety and burnout while attempting to increase happiness, mindfulness, and self-esteem. Depending on who you’re talking to, some people will tell you about their self-care routine and what works for them. However, self-care is not about following someone else’s routine, instead, it is about finding the self-care routine that you know will benefit you the most. One way to figure out what benefits you are missing in your everyday routine would be to make a list of activities you enjoy or would like to try. The list can look a little something like this:
1. Take my dog for a walk
2. Read a book.
3. Watch my favorite romcom.
4. Take a nap.
5. Eat my favorite ice cream.
6. Go to the park.
7. Cry.
8. Go to the nearest coffee shop and read.
9. Take a trip to the spa.
10. Paint. Something. Anything.
11. Find a new hobby.
12. Take a walk.
13. Go for a jog.
14. Bake. Cakes. Cookies. Pies. Quiches.
15. Go shopping.
16. Buy a new plant.
17. Do my face care routine.
18. Dance.
19. Clean my room.
20. Wash my car.
21. Take a bath.
22. Drink a glass of wine.
23. Play a video game.
24. Talk to a friend.
25. Go to the movies.
The list above is just an example of what could possibly be on your list. There are about a hundred things, if not more, that you could add to your own self-care routine list. It doesn’t have to be in complete order. You can make the list your own, whether that means having a list handy and picking from the list of things that you like to do on that list, or chronologically listing out the importance of the activities in order for the days you need self-care the most. There is also the option of treating the list like a bucket list and attempting to get through all the activities at some point throughout the year. I would lastly like to add that self-care does not have to be time consuming. Some people may feel that they do not have the time to fit in self care activities, so I would like to note that self care could be something as quick as taking one to five minutes to express gratitude. You can shape your self-care activity in a way that would be most time efficient for you, regardless it is more so about fitting in self-care, rather than allowing self-care to be an afterthought. Your self-care routine technically doesn’t have to be a routine. However, it is important to adopt self-care of some sort, because it is one of the ways to treat and thank yourself for once.
The National Institute of Mental Health is a great resource for getting an idea of ways to care for yourself. They also provide wellness toolkits, cautions symptoms to look out for in regards to your mental health and they lastly provide a list of federal resources that are there for psycho educational purposes to further educate yourself on your options.
Resource Link
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/caring-for-your-mental-health
References
“Care for Yourself.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 22 July 2021, https://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/stress-coping/care-for-yourself/index.html#print.
“Caring for Your Mental Health.” National Institute of Mental Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Dec. 2022, https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/caring-for-your-mental-health.