How often do you hear people talk about “self-care”, and silently scuff under your breathe mumbling “yeah, sure… you have a toddler and tell me how much self-care you get in.”? We hear people talk about self-care way more than they talk about ways to actually get self-care in. I wrote a blog a while ago discussing how self-care doesn’t have to look or feel as complicated as it sounds. It doesn’t have to be a weekend getaway to an all-inclusive resort, or an overnight staycation downtown; even though those would be nice options.
Sometimes self-care is simply waking up well before your kids so you can actually drink your coffee while it’s still hot and scroll aimlessly through social media uninterrupted.
As a stay at home mom, I really have to get my self-care in whenever and however I can, because my sanity literally depends on it LOL (this full-time stay at home life is not for the faint of heart). Below I’m sharing five of my favorite and easy ways to practice self-care.
1.Tea Me Please
I love hot tea. I love the sound of my kettle whistling as the water boils and the taste of honey blended with the herbs in whatever my tea of choice is at the moment. After a long day of chasing and entertaining my three-year-old, one of my favorite things to do is brew myself a nice cup of tea, grab a book or turn on some soothing music, light a nice warm scented candle, and just be. It’s something about that combination that is really calming. This self-care option isn’t time-consuming and is the perfect Segway to a peaceful night’s sleep.
2. Tender Loving Care
Number two on my list of 5 Easy Ways to Self-Care is to take a purely pampering shower or bath with your favorite body oils, scrubs, and soaps. This is an option I’ve been implementing more than I did in the past. After a long day of ABC and Blippi songs sometimes the last thing I want to do is be in the bathroom any longer than I have to.
But, I recently watched a podcast that I enjoy by MrsKevOnStage called “The Love Hour” in which she had sexologist Goody Howard on as her special guest to talk about well… sex. While on the show, Goody began to discuss the different erogenous zones that both women and men have, and she also discussed how sensory helps with sex. In her conversation about sensory, she also talked about how she showers in the dark because she knows where everything is, and being in the dark allows her to be fully present in that moment and to really experience her shower. So she’s able to tune into the beating of the water on the tub, the different fragrant notes of her bath wash, and the feel of the heat of the water on her skin. I decided to try out this experience for myself and let me tell you, I LOVE IT. It’s a beautiful way to unwind, relax, and clear your mind after a long day of being needed.
3. Wine Down
You should’ve known this would be on the list. For me, a nice little wine down alone is by far one of my favorite ways to grab some self-care after a long day of talking exclusively to my three-year-old. Now, I don’t always have it on hand but when I do you better believe after a very long and mentally active day I enjoy grabbing a glass out of the cabinet (that I purchased from Ikea; they are huge), reaching for my fave sweet n’ salty snack (hello, BoomChickaPop), sitting on the couch and finding something to watch until I go to sleep.
4. Netflix N’Chill
Out of all the ways to grab some self-care time, I would say that this is probably my favorite and most frequent. I enjoy getting lost in a good series and analyzing movies on my favorite streaming platforms like Amazon Prime Video (Vikings, Yellowstone), HBO Max (Lovecraft Country, Succession), Netflix (The Blacklist, Peaky Blinders), PBS Masterpiece (Downton Abbey- you can find the movie on HBO), Starz (Ghost, Outlander), and Hulu (The Handmaids Tale, For Life). Streaming n’ chilling is an excellent way to unwind and literally mentally escape a long day.
5. “I Wanna See You Workout for Me”
I’m not going to lie, I haven't done this one in a while since COVID hit and closed down the gyms and sent my son home, but, I recently bought an Echelon bike and am looking forward to getting back to working out. I’m not a scientist but I’ve read that working out releases endorphins and is an excellent way to relieve stress.
Self care is extremely important to our health and the health of our families. It doesn’t mater what method you choose or how much time you have just make sure you get some time to yourself to breathe alone kid and spouse free.
