This post is all about the 13 simple self care practices for mental health you need to include in your daily (and busy) routine this year.
In today’s daily life, finding the time to care for ourselves physically and mentally is a real challenge. Whether it’s a corporate job or a family with children, something always seems more important than ourselves.
This year is going to be different. This year, you will find moments to create your self-care routine to be the best version of yourself for the people surrounding you (and yourself, too!)
Including these 13 self care practices in your life will make you fall in love with your routine, allowing you to work efficiently, regain focus, and be productive.
Let’s Dive Into the Self Care Practices For Mental Health You Need To Include in Your Self-Care Routine
1. Stop Rushing Your Mornings
Morning time can become your best ally to create self care practices you will stick to. The world is still asleep. Outside, it’s calm, and there’s less noise and distractions.
You can create the morning routine of your dreams, allowing you to get a lot done and be productive for the day ahead.
I know waking up early is sometimes the most complex challenge. However, it’s nothing compared to the stress of being late, forgetting something, or doing everything in a rush. You will bring that feeling of stress with you throughout the day.
You can discover what makes you feel good in the morning and carve time for it. Sometimes, waking up 30 minutes earlier than usual is more than enough.
2. Wake Up Early, Go To Bed Earlier
How can we be proactive and ready to tackle the day if we don’t get at least 8 hours of sleep?
Well, we can’t. We must go to bed earlier to create “me time” in the morning. And Trust me, if you start to wake up at 6 am every morning, you will desire to be in bed by 10 pm.
Studies show that there is a correlation between lack of good sleep and several health issues, such as increased body weight, increased risk of getting sick, and depression.
Moreover, by going to bed earlier and getting enough sleep, you will increase your productivity for the day after.
{Looking for The Perfect Morning Routine? Check Out 12 Healthy Morning Habits That Will Change Your Life}
3. Read Everyday
We all should be reading more. It is something that we often forget cause we don’t have the time, and it does not fall under our main priorities. However, reading can be the solution to disconnecting from the outside world and calming our minds.
Reading improves your memory (as you need to remember characters, settings, and plots) and helps you become a better communicator. I always turn to books when I feel less creative or inspired. Reading biographies and stories about other people’s lives motivates me to do more and get back on track.
Moreover, reading at night (and avoiding screen time) can be a way to signal your body that it’s time to sleep and, therefore, sleep better and earlier.
4. Meditate (at least) 10 Minutes Every Day
Meditation is a simple and free practice that anyone can include in the daily self care checklist. The meditative state can bring calmness and restore the inner peace of an individual even after only 5 minutes of meditation.
The idea is that you focus on the present moment to stop the thought streams in your mind (and we all have them). These thoughts prevent you from living in the present moment and lead you to think about future matters that create stress.
You can decide if meditation is a morning practice (relaxing your mind before a busy day) or an evening practice (calming your thoughts before a busy day). Or you can even practice it more than once during the day if you have time.
5. Journaling
I am unsure why we stop keeping a journal once adulthood is reached. Journaling can help you create order among the chaos of thoughts during daily life.
Keeping a journal does not have to be a chore. You need to keep it simple: a diary and a pen that comes in hand when you have so many thoughts to process that you can’t do it efficiently if you keep them in your mind.
Journaling means writing your thoughts down on paper as if moving them from your mind would help you create clarity. Journaling can help us cope with stress and prioritize our concerns.
6. Create A Daily To-Do List
Creating a daily to-do list is like journaling your tasks (instead of your thoughts). This is particularly helpful before busy days when you have a series of tasks you cannot stop thinking about.
Writing down all the tasks you need to accomplish and dedicating a specific amount of time to each will prevent you from stressing over them even further (and maybe forgetting something).
When we have a lot of priorities, it is easy to underestimate the time we will need to accomplish them. That is why setting the time to dedicate to each task is fundamental.
We also need to be realistic. A day comprises 24 hours (less than 16 if we consider 8 hours of sleep), and we cannot kill ourselves to accomplish something. Therefore, we must be practical and prioritize what needs to be done first.
7. Reduce Social Media Scrolling (also in the evening)
We all love social media and are curious about people’s daily lives. However, besides taking away precious time (that you could be using for more productive activities), they can also trigger negative comparison thoughts with adverse outcomes for our mental health.
A study conducted at Iowa State University found that decreasing our social media consumption can reduce anxiety, depression, loneliness, and FOMO. Additionally, reduced social media scrolling can help positive thinking and a better outlook on life.
Consuming social media from 30 minutes to one hour a day would be highly beneficial for your mental well-being and productivity.
8. Get Cozy In The Evening
It is my favorite moment of the day when I finish my dishwashing and kitchen cleaning and finally get cozy. With a cup of hot water and magnesium, I finally enjoy my comfort TV series or a good book.
Create an evening moment that relaxes you, including what you prefer: a TV series, a good book, journaling, meditating, or reading. Everything can serve the purpose of calming you down and getting ready for bed.
9. Fall In Love With Being Alone (And Silence)
Your alone time is the perfect time to recharge from your daily fatigue. Most people hate being alone without recognizing the power of these moments.
When you are working on yourself, or an important project, being alone is the ideal condition to focus on your real priorities, getting your work done and just taking care of yourself.
It can seem selfish, but having the time to work on yourself (and yourself only) can help you show up for the people around you and give them the best, satisfied, and efficient version of you.
Silence is so powerful for concentration, focus, and processing your thoughts.
10. Clear Space, Clear Mind
The space we live in can impact how we feel and live at home. Home should be our comfort space, where we can relax. However, if your space is a mess, with many things around in the wrong place, your mind cannot be at peace.
If there’s something I can’t stand, it’s coming home after a long day at work and finding clothes around, dishes not washed, and bed undone. You don’t need to be an organization freak; however, finding a place for all your objects at home and sticking to it can help you keep your space tidy.
This is even more important if you have to work from home sometimes.
11. Practice Positive Thinking
Practicing positive thinking can help with stress and improve your overall health.
It does not mean that you ignore life’s problems; it just means that you accept what happens and decide to act productively and positively. You firmly believe everything will be fine if you work towards your problems.
It all starts with how you speak with yourself and think about yourself during positive and negative moments. Accept and be gentle with yourself when you fail, and don’t say words of discouragement.
12. Practice Daily Gratitude
Practicing gratitude can help you improve your mental health and your relationship with the world.
In our daily (busy) life, noticing all the small things we should be grateful for seems complicated. We are just focused on what could be better instead of realizing we are lucky to have the small stuff (which are not so small for the majority of us)
Several ways can help you practice daily gratitude. Keep a gratitude journal, mindfully noticing moments you need to be grateful for and think about all the people you have and what they provide to your daily life.
13. Treat Yourself With What Makes You Happy
This seems like a basic tip, but sometimes, we must remind ourselves that happiness is important.
Occasionally, we can find joy in tiny things. Treat yourself to your favorite hot beverages in the morning; postpone an afternoon of work to spend it with your loved ones, or buy that dress to make you feel confident.
All these can seem unnecessary. However, if you notice how these “unimportant” things make you feel, you will realize they can transform a bad day into a good one. So, if you wake up with negative thoughts, take a small step forward and proactively do something to treat yourself.
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