The concept of self-care can be likened to an art form that should be cultivated over time. For overall health, it’s best to nurture your body, mind, and soul. Eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, and making time for self-reflection can be challenging without a specific plan of action. Adding one or two relaxing or rejuvenating activities into your daily routine can help get you started.
Walk Somewhere Every Day
There is strong evidence that walking can have just as much of a positive effect on your physical and mental health as running can, minus the stress to the joints. Researchers suggest walking somewhere at least once a day to make walking a part of your life. Walking to the store or your favorite restaurant for takeout can make a world of difference to your mental health. It can help you clear negative thoughts and focus on more positive ones.
The steady rhythm of walking at a brisk pace positively affects the hippocampus, which is the part of the brain that is associated with cognitive function. Walking forty-five minutes to an hour every day sends more blood to the brain than would normally occur. As you push forward with a brisk pace, your body will release chemicals called endorphins that will make you feel more positive about things. The combination of these benefits offers a heightened sense of awareness and mental clarity, which can truly be therapeutic. On the right day, walking can help you reach a conclusion to a problem that has been bothering you.
Use All-Natural Skin Care Products
Feed your body with the healthiest foods you can get, but remember that your outer body needs your attention as well. Nurture your skin using only the purest skincare products you can afford. Many chemicals are added to lotions, lip balms, and deodorants that can negatively affect you. Petroleum jelly, butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), and parabens are just a few. These chemicals can seep through the skin and cause you health problems down the road.
If you use lip balms regularly, the danger of ingesting these chemicals, and being harmed by them, increases significantly. Restrict yourself to lotions and lip balms without harmful ingredients and protect your health, while nourishing your skin. For example, 101 Ointment contains the active skin-hydrating ingredient lanolin. Lanolin is a natural moisturizer that is sourced from sheep’s wool. It is similar to human sebum, which is an oil secreted by the sebaceous glands in the skins of mammals. Treat your lips, face, and body with lotions, ointments, and balms made with natural ingredients.
Take Up a Smoothie Habit
If you get into the habit of making one or more smoothies a day, it can be a convenient way of adding more nutrients to your diet. You can purchase a single-serve smoothie maker for a reasonable price and get blending right away. Start with a base liquid, such as milk, yogurt, almond milk, soy milk, coconut milk, or fruit juice. Create your smoothies using your favorite fruits, vegetables, and seeds like chia and flaxseed.
You can make custom smoothies based on your particular dietary needs. For example, if you are trying to lose weight, you might want to stay away from sweeteners commonly used in smoothies, such as honey, agave nectar, etc. Fat-burning ingredients like green tea powder, spinach, strawberries, and blueberries are common in weight-loss smoothies. Just remember to expend more calories than you take in, or your efforts will be fruitless.
If you don’t normally enjoy consuming vegetables and fruit, smoothies are a quick way to consume them. You can down a smoothie pretty quickly and go back to your daily routine. If you don’t have time to cook a meal, a smoothie can sustain you until you can. If you really enjoy meat but would like to incorporate more fruits and vegetables into your diet, smoothies can help you do this. You can enjoy your meat dishes and have a smoothie later for a more balanced diet.
Self-care is all about taking time to nurture yourself. Think of it as a way of becoming your own advocate and administering your own forms of therapy. You can’t expect others to always be there for you when you need them, but you can always be there for yourself.
Author: Mandy Kloppers
Mandy is a qualified therapist who treats depression, anxiety, OCD, PTSD, trauma, and many other types of mental health issues. She provides online therapy around the world for those needing support and also provides relationship counselling.
