by nadia khansaI’m willing to bet you’re on your phone as we speak (I know I am), while you’re here, there are ways to practice self care! There are tons of apps to do this, from gratitude tracking apps, organization apps, etc. I’m choosing to highlight some of my favorites that help with physical and spiritual fitness. 1. headspaceWe touched on the importance of mindfulness last week, Head-space is probably the best go-to option for beginning meditation. It’s very simple guided meditations--which is, instead of “focusing on nothing,” a meditation that has a calming voice guiding your thoughts so that you have an easier time focussing on the whole process. The app itself is also very clean and user friendly. 2. Sleep CycleSleep hygiene is crucial for self care. Sometimes bad moods, stress, and things we carry with us all day could be rooted in poor sleep. With Sleep Cycle you can monitor how your sleep is doing each night, and set alarms for when you plan on waking up and it gives a 30 minute range based on what time you’re going to sleep so that you wake up in the right part of your sleep cycle. Seeing trends in these things can help you see if you need to fix anything about your night routines and sleep habits! 3. Insight TimerThis is another meditation app, definitely not as simple as headspace. It has a ton of really cool features, endless guided meditations related to anxiety, inspiring creativity, easing depression, you name it, they’ve got it. You can log on and see everyone in the world who is logged on and meditating alongside you, and it can really create a sense of solidarity for some. For me, it gets overwhelming (everything overwhelms me if you haven’t noticed yet), my favorite feature of Insight Timer--which is actually the meditation tool I use most--is their private meditation feature. You can choose how long you want to meditate (I usually just do 5 minutes), a soothing, ambient sound for the backdrop (running water, thunderstorms, guitar, a chorus of “omm”s, etc), and different gong sounds to go off as you please. I usually do 5 minutes with running water as the backdrop sound, and a gong for every minute that passes so I don’t have to wonder at all how long I’ve been sitting there and just breath. 4. Buddhify (not free)This one is not free, but since I’ve already mentioned 2 free meditation apps I don’t feel bad about including it. I like buddhify because of their wheel of meditation options. You can choose for a meditation for basically every time and mood and situation of the day in a really easy-to-navigate space. Love it. Also #aesthetic 5. SworkitSometimes self-care is just forcing yourself to work out a bit. It’s not feasible or even possible for some people to do this, but for those who can, with Sworkit you can schedule just a 5 minute stretching session if you want to, or you could do a cardio burst or strength building wherever you are, no equipment required. Exercising improves endorphin activities in our brains and could be just the pick-me-up you need. 6. GoodRxGoodRx is an app where you can type your medical prescriptions and compare costs at nearby pharmacies and if any of them have discounts or coupons you can apply to your purchase. Medication is important for physical and mental health, and being able to afford it without breaking bank is equally as important!
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Grounding can be an important part of self care in regard to mental health, but what is “grounding?” Grounding techniques are small acts we can do to calm down our nervous systems and emotional reactiveness when we are being triggered. Basically, it is a way of distracting yourself from the past by bringing yourself back to the present. It can especially be important for people living with trauma in their histories to acquaint themselves with grounding techniques they can do comfortably when necessary. There are tons and tons of different ways this can be accomplished, I’ve picked a few of my favorites that have always worked well for me to describe below!
by Nadia Khansa “Mindfulness” is a word that gets thrown around a lot I feel, and is usually (incorrectly) associated with yoga and meditation. While you can mindfully do both of these things, mindfulness in and of itself is not limited to those activities (but I do totally love meditating, not a fan of yoga though). So what is mindfulness? There are a few definitions, but the essence of it is to be in a state of awareness in the present moment. Again, usually associated with yoga and meditation, but not everyone can afford things like yoga classes, or have extra time in the day to meditate (and meditation doesn’t work for everyone, anyway!). The idea of self care and mindfulness is not to inconvenience yourself, blow a hole in your wallet, or try something inorganic for you. The idea is to learn how to make all moments mindful, and how this state of being could increase your quality of life in general. So, let’s say you’re a teacher and you have a lot of papers to grade and no extra time in your day to spare--your self care could simply be mindfully drinking a cup of tea as you work, and deliberately focussing your 5 senses on this practice. Just noticing what the tea smells like, how the temperature feels in your mouth, or the steam on your face, noticing the taste, and the feeling of the mug in your hand. These are all small self-care oriented ways of staying present and mindful when you don’t have time for any other self-care practices! Another popular way to practice mindfulness is adult-coloring books. But to be fair, adult coloring is also a super fun self-care thing to do even if you aren’t giving it your undivided attention. Sometimes I like to mindfully color with my full attention, but more often than not if I have that kind of time, I personally am more inclined to wanting to create something. I do, however, love coloring while I watch TV.
by Katy BriggsSelf-care isn’t always face masks and bubble baths (it definitely can be, though). Sometimes you need a reminder to take care of yourself. When the seasonal depression hits or you’re in a slump, small things like going to the grocery store or taking a bath can be a tough sell to a brain that doesn’t want to get out of bed. This is where post-it notes and planners come in (I know, I know, my Virgo is showing). Getting out of bed when your alarm goes off is often the absolute hardest part of the day. So don’t give yourself time to think about going back to sleep. Leave yourself a little motivational quote or a note to yourself right on top of your phone or whatever the first thing is that you grab when you wake up. Let yourself feel that little pick-me-up and jump right out of bed. Here’s the part where I’ll recommend stretching or yoga or 10 quick jumping jacks to get some endorphins moving but I know that’s easier said than done. Right away, put on the outfit that you laid out the night before that makes you feel beautiful and confident (there’s that past self looking out for future self again). No getting back in bed now! Throughout the week, make sure to give yourself little reminders to do the things that will make you feel like an actual human being. If you use a planner, write down things that might seem like a given but are hard to make yourself do sometimes (plus it is SO satisfying to cross things off a list). I got my planner from Bando! They have lots of super cute options to help you stay organized. Then give yourself a reward afterward! Showered more than once a week? Awesome, eat a piece of chocolate. Recognized the feeling of hunger and ate something? Amazing, buy yourself something pretty. And, hey, if what you really, really need is to just stay in bed and not think about work or doing anything at all, by all means, do it! These are just tips for when you are feeling really low and can’t seem to make yourself do things you usually do.
by katy briggs, & nadia KhansaKaty's take on self care: |
Reading through Katy’s brilliant take on what self care is, I think it’s great that we’re offering multiple perspectives because my regime is the total opposite! In general, because of my anxiety and just who I am as a person, I always have my future self at the front of my mind. I’m always the person with their day planned, week planned, month planned, I have a rough plan for how I want each month of the year to go, a 2 year plan, a 5 year plan, a rough idea of where I want to be in 10 years, and where I want to be when I’m 40. I plan all three of my meals for the next day every night before I go to bed, I plan my outfit if its cold, my outfit if its warm, and a cute and comfy version of each (because I’m also hella indecisive and if I leave these decisions until morning, it will take me like an hour). | image: me not taking care of myself and overworking!! Spoiler alert i got home at like 9:30pm and cried |
If I start thinking about what my future self needs, I work towards those goals and needs until I am literally so tired I have a panic attack and cannot stop crying from the fatigue of the overwhelming feeling of never being done planning. It can be daunting, especially since so much of it is this cognitive mental health piece that no amount of therapy seems to ease. So, my self care usually ends up being something that can stop me in my tracks and force me to look at what I need in that moment (which is usually, to relax).
i am being cute and happy and curling my hair like a good lil self-care guru~ | Because of this, a lot of my self care ends up being the kinda stereotypical things--baths, face masks, candles, hiking, arts, throwing my phone into a dark cavern and ignoring it until the morning, tying myself to the couch and watching TV, you know, all things that literally force you to commit to being in one place at one time and taking in the moment. I guess the technical term for my self care is “mindfulness”--which you can read more about later in this series! Often times, my self care is trusting that I have done enough for my future self, and when I get to that time, I will be fine. But only if I take care of myself right now. |
Long story short, self care can mean a lot of different things to different people, its not really about trying to fit the stereotypes of what "self-care" is, but rather, to toy around with several different mechanisms and see what works for you! How do YOU self care? Let us know in the comment section!