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When you hear of Self care habits that will ease your stress, we often think of activities like spa treatments and the likes. Yes those are part of it, but in this article, we will be focusing on some activities that if done mindfully and intentionally can serve as a form of self care to make you feel your best.

Are you always stressed out and burned out as a result of round the clock daily activities? Here are 42 self care habits that will make you feel your best self and appreciate your life even more.

One ubiquitous attribute of working-class adults is the ability to work almost round the clock to survive in today’s world, and just put self care in the back burner. Self care habits are not even thought of when the game of habit and routine building is being played.

It is no longer news that to be able to function optimally, one must first refill on the inside, and this can be made possible by practicing effective self care habits either on a daily, bi-weekly or weekly base.

WHY ARE SELF CARE HABITS SO IMPORTANT

The importance of self care cannot be over emphasized. Ever heard of the phrase “you cannot pour from an empty cup”? This is so true as you cannot give what you don’t have.

To be able to function at our best and serve in whatever capacity we are blessed to occupy, we must first serve ourselves before doing same for others.

There are numerous reasons why self care is so important, but I’m going to be listing a couple of them;

To be able to give our best!
For our mental and physical well-being!
To help us refill our strength and find motivation to forge on!
To bring us closer to our inner self and re-ignite our purpose!
Helps brings us to a place of mindfulness and gratitude for the present!
Helps us balance out our lives without burn outs!

In this article, I’ll be listing out some self care habits and best practices that can help you stop and smell the roses on this journey called life.

It is not a good practice to zone into our daily activities, moving from one seemingly important task to another without consciously living the life of our dreams. Self Care habits avails us that opportunity to stop, pause, rethink, refill and re-strategize with a perfect come back to carry us through the course of our lives.

Incorporating self-care habits into your lifestyle helps you think clearly and see life for what it really is – which is to be enjoyed.

Without further ado, lets delve right into the 42 self care habits you can incorporate into your routine for a healthier life.

42 SELF CARE HABITS TO RELIEVE STRESS

1. Sleep

In the spirit of transparency, I am putting this up as number one because I also have to ram this into my subconscious and make this a solid and unshakable routine.

I always felt like 24 hours is never enough and my sleep hours had to pay dearly for it. But guess who was missing out on quality sleep and rest…Me!

Sleep is one habit you should never compromise. Experts have said that sleeping and average of 8 hours a day can help you reduce stress and improve your mood. It also boosts your productivity and overall performance.

If you are finding it difficult to sleep as a result of insomnia, then you should contact your physician or a therapist depending on what your case may be. But by all means, do not miss out on your quality sleep time.

2. Hydration as a self care habit

I remember one time I was feeling so dizzy and burned out due to the overload of work I had pilled up on my desk. I had just finished working on some projects and decided to rest a bit when I remembered I hadn’t had water for over 8 hours!

When I immediately got to drinking water, I felt almost 50 percent better than I felt a while back.

It is said that water is important in the elimination of body waste and toxins, Mental clarity and mood management (Center for Disease Control and Prevention CDC 2016).

One of the simplest ways to love up on your self is to water down at least 8 glasses of water daily for optimal health.

PS: I just paused writing this post to gulp down a glass of water *wink*

3. Being outside is a self care activity

Personally, I’m an indoor kind of person. I can stay in my home for days on without necessarily going outdoors. But one thing I can tell you from experience is that it can feel so choking sometimes that I hurriedly go out for some outdoor therapy to clear my airways with some good loving fresh air and mother nature.

A good outdoor experience like visiting a park, walking in nature, or just cycling against the wind is just good therapy. It helps a whole lot to de-clutter your mental space and gives you a good dose of dopamine to help you feel good.

4. Physical touch

A very good example of physical touch self-care routine habit is having regular body massages, hand massages and foot robs.

Having massages helps to loosen up your joints and makes for flexible movement and an overall blood flow to the important parts of your body.

Massages can also help to improve your sleep, so if you are finding it difficult sleeping, maybe your body just needs to ease out some tension and is long overdue for a massage.

Having a foot massage is also beneficial for your well-being. Remember they take you every where you go, so it is time to give your hands and feet some loving and tender care.

Stretching/Yoga for self care

As you grow older, the tendency to have stiff joints becomes higher. I remember when I was much younger, I could do so many strenuous activities without thinking twice. But at 30 plus years, I’d have to take precautions before embarking on the said activity.

Consistently stretching especially in the morning or practicing yoga can help improve your posture, relieve you of stress and reduce your potential risk of injury as your body is fit to withstand unexpected strenuous actions that may occur.

This is a good self care habit to incorporate into your lifestyle that will relieve you of stress.

6. Exercise/Movement

Let me burst your bubbles…One of the reasons why you might be having frequent headaches may be because of your lack of frequent exercise. Lack of exercise is often one of the reasons for tension headache in adults. One way I have found out to tackle the problem of not exercising is to integrate it into my daily activities. Activities like:

Taking the stair case instead of the elevator
Parking the car some kilometers away from your actual destination so that you can walk the remaining distance
Speed cleaning your house to help you burn some calories is a not talked about self care habit
Dancing to a music you love is definitely a self care habit that will make you feel your best!

All these are forms of exercise that are not such a big deal because they are easy to do.

7. Deep breathing

Have you ever had a long heartfelt cry and afterwards had some deep breathing exercises. This can help clear out your stuffy nose and refresh your lungs.

One good qualities of deep breathing is the relaxing effect. This is why most therapist incorporate it into their sessions to relax their client and make them feel present.

Deep breathing exercises are beneficial in also lowering blood pressure, and we all know that high blood pressure is predominant in adults of nowadays.

So integrating a minute or two of deep breathing exercise into your day is a cheap self-care habit that can improve your health.

8. Decreased stress activity

This is my favourite way of good self-care habit. Anything that tends to add to your stress level, you avoiding it is a good way to care for yourself and your overall well-being.

One of such examples is toxic relationship. Anyone who has been in an abusive or manipulative relationship be it with a lover, friend or family member, knows how stressful, time and resource draining that can be.

So to care for yourself is to disassociate yourself from stressful occurrences.

9. Increased Happiness activities

Just like you avoid stressful activities, people or environment, a more productive activity should be your go to place.

Any activity, people or environment that will add to your happiness and bring you joy, peace and calm should be embraced.

Living a wholesome live comes from the inside out, and any thing that will bring you wholeness should be welcomed into your life.

10. Gratitude

I made a comprehensive list of things we should be grateful for, and how being grateful can help us appreciate the little things and see things for what they really are.

A grateful person is always peaceful, and peace and calm are great attributes of self-care.

11. Journaling

Journaling is a form of pouring out your heart, but in this case, instead of to a friend, therapist or coach, you are writing it all out, and this can be a very therapeutic activity.

Just reading your heart content in your journal has a way of assuring you and assuaging your fears and doubts.

Pouring out your worries and stressful thought in a form of journaling is a good way of self-care and it should be a lifestyle.

Here are 50 Journal prompt for a solemn refection on your life

12. Me time

I’m a sucker for me times. I love it so much because this is when I have all my ideas come to me.

It so strange how our brains function when we are in our safe space and thoughts, free from external factors, distractions and worries.

Spending time all alone and by yourself without a companion is a good time to think, refill and refresh your mind, and that is a good self-care practice to have.

13. Hobby

We all have that one hobby we loved as kids. I remember watching a video of 50 plus women doing some double dutch activity and it was so fulfilling to watch. I can tell from the smiles on their faces that they all felt alive, refreshed and happy.

Doing something you love can help to boost your mood and prepare you for a better work experience. Remember, self-care is never selfish.

14. Laughter

What did they say about laughter again… “it is the best medicine in the world”. No wonder one can feel so much better after a good laugh session.

It will surprise you to know that there are a lot of people that hardly laugh or have frequent moment of laughter in their lives.

It is understandable that life’s struggles can get us so preoccupied with being busy and serious with almost everything, but it is always a good thing to find joy even in the simplest of things.

Here are 150 Laughter quotes and funny sayings to make you laugh out loud

15. Reading

Asides the educational benefits of reading, reading has a way of taking us out of the present into a whole world of imagination and dreams, and I’m here for all that because it actually costs you nothing to imagine.

Permit me to say that investing in yourself is also a valuable form of self-care. When you invest in yourself, it shows that you love and value your growth. Loving and valuing yourself is a sure way to care for yourself and hence a good habit to integrate into your lifestyle.

16. Self-discovery

One of the aim of this blog is to discover who you really are and become so self-aware that your values in life becomes unshakable and well grounded.

When you discover your purpose, there is this sense of direction you have.

It is OK if you are not there yet, just give yourself space to grow and with time, everything will fall into place.

This is the highest form of self-care. Knowing who you are, and having the confidence in yourself that no one can make you feel less is a sure self-care habit and attribute to build.

Bookmark this – How to build your self-worth and self esteem

17. Digital detox

Hmmm, this is such an important and difficult discussion to have especially in a technologically driven world where almost everything is online.

I understand that for most adults, they cannot do without these devices and platforms because this is where their work is. But if we are being very truthful with ourselves, setting a boundary to the kind of content we consume can go a long way to decreasing our stress levels.

Personally, I have frequent episodes of headaches when I spend unhealthy time on social media.

This could be as a result of the intangible pressure and the effect of excess screen time on the eyes. Asides my work that makes me use the phone and other screen gadgets, I always make time to stay off social media and the digital space entirely and just focus on other offline activities that fuels my soul.

Detoxifying your digital space by getting rid of things online that makes you feel stressed is an intelligent way to integrate self-care into your life.

18. Set goals

Goal setting is just like a map to a destination, only that in the journey of life, there is actually no destination. You just keep getting better and reinventing your self on your own terms and not on any one’s time line. Ok, I digress.

Nothing feels good and screams self-care like having a clear path and plan on what your life’s purpose is. Goal setting helps us achieve this.

19. Meditation

Whenever the topic of self-care is being mentioned, people tend to think about things that will benefit just the body alone and completely neglecting the spirit being and the mind.

You can look well and sound, but if you have a troubled mind, then peace is far from you and meditation is one cure to a troubled mind.

Aside increasing self-awareness, one of the core benefits of meditation is that it reduces negative emotions. Negativity can stifle your happiness and make you feel choked. Releasing all those emotions is one sure way to build in a powerful self-care habit and routine into your life.

20. Try something new

When you feel so much burn out with your activities, sometimes it could be a sign of a boring routine, or a routine that needs a little bit of a spice up or creativity.

One of the reasons why I go about my day effortlessly with joy is because I always strive to incorporate a little bit of creativity in my every day routine.

Doing something repeatedly and continuously can be mundane and monotonous and this can make carrying out our daily routines burdensome. To break this cycle of boredom without necessarily disrupting your routine, you need to get creative and find fun ways to make your routine a lifestyle.

Must read: How to create an effective morning routine

21. Affirmations

Affirmations are daily reminders of who we really are, our worth and values and our purpose while on earth.

It is a way to say love messages to yourself that you would have wanted a loved one to say to you.

The thing about affirmations is that it can sound awkward at first especially when you are not working in that truth, but with constancy and repetition, you become so used to the words spoken and from registering in your subconscious, it eventually becomes your reality because you will be living in it.

Affirmations are a good way to make you feel your best and stay motivated.

22. Time with ‘good’ friends

Emphasis on the good. It doesn’t make sense that you are feeling stressed and then treat yourself to the company of a friend that stresses you out mentally and emotionally.

Good friends are like medicine to our souls. Their presence alone lightens up our mood and burden, and their words are soothing to our pain.

Having a good conversation with a friend can help you gain clarity, insight and a non-biased perspective about something that might have been troubling you.

Just having a chill time with friends can do a whole lot of good to your soul and the company of a good friend should not be taken for granted.

23. Time with family

Spending quality time with your family members can serve as a mood booster when you are feeling down.

Personally, spending time with my kids helps to bring me to the present. I feel so grateful for them being in my life and the mere thought that they would grow up one day and I would miss those play time makes it make sense even more. They really do grow up so fast!

So, having that quality time with the important people in your life is never a time wasted.

It is one self-care habit that is not often seen as a self-care procedure because we always want to run away from them and just be, when in actual sense, we should schedule in their own special family time when we can all bond, build memories and of course have hearty discussions that will further foster the growth and relationship.

24. Date night

There is something so soothing about a cool date night with good food and music and better still in the open with the skies full of stars.

It’s so magical and peaceful and helps you ease out and relive the moment.

When the topic of date night comes up, it is often associated with intimate Couples or a group of friends and acquaintances hanging out.

But no, this should not be the kind of date night you must have if that is not how you operate.

You can have a solo date away from the chaos of the day in the quiet of the night and of course somewhere safe and tranquil, or if you love, you can make a friend tag along.

Remember the idea of all these self-care habits listed out is to integrate activities that can help you relax and refill and not the ones that will stress you out.

So, choose your company wisely.

25. Kindness to a stranger

Have you ever shown kindness to someone who would never have the opportunity to pay you back, and you just feel so proud of yourself?

The world is so full of troubles, and it will indeed be a blessing to be someone that puts a smile on another’s face without conditions whatsoever.

26. Social media

Yes, I know this might sound contradictory to No 17 above, but please hear me out!

You would agree with me that there are some social media pages you would visit and they would automatically stress you out by putting you under unnecessary pressure.

Those are the ones you should stay away from.

Find a couple of social media pages that help fuel your fire, unwind or make you want to become a better person.

Here, I made a list of 12 YouTubers that will help you on your personal growth journey. Do well to check them out.

27. Sports

Engaging in your favourite sports is one way to take care of yourself. If you have ever engaged in a sporting activity especially the one that you love, you will agree with me that the deep sleep that comes after this exercise is one that you so much needed.

If engaging in sports is not your thing, then maybe watching a sport game over a glass of win or some pop-corn will do well to your body and soul just like the actual sport itself.

28. Being present

I always talk about being present a lot because time lost can never be recovered.

It doesn’t make sense that you are flossing over the future and how glamourous it should be, when the present is already the future you dreamt of and should be relived and enjoyed.

It is understandable that as human beings, our needs and wants are insatiable and as such unattainable.

That is why it is pertinent to train ourselves to always see the joys in our present situation and be grateful for it.

A person that is mindful and present is a grateful person.

You cannot separate the two and this is one of the best ways to care for yourself mentally.

29. Vitamins/supplements

As human beings, our bodies need vitamins to help it function optimally. This is why eating nutritious food is very important.

Imagine having a plant and not giving it the basic ingredients needed to thrive. It will wither and die.

In the same vein, we are like plants and should be taken care of properly with the right nutrients to flourish.

Supplements are necessary to augment whatever nutrients that our bodies may be lacking.

As a woman, our bodies go through a whole lot of changes monthly, and taking good vitamins and supplements are a way to help our bodies go through those changes and carry us effectively.

30. Health checkups

Most of all the sudden sickness and eventual deaths of people that you hear are as a result of neglected health and medical checkups.

Some things can be avoided is we prioritize our health and make it a point of duty to always check for our overall well-being.

In the part of the world where I come from, having regular check-ups is seen as a waste of money and that is one of the reasons why insurance companies and especially health insurances don’t thrive here.

People would rather be at the point of death before seeking for medical intervention. This shouldn’t be your story.

Remember, your health and time is the most important asset that you have. A wise man once said that a healthy man wants a thousand things, but a sick man wants but one!

31. Hygiene

Hygiene is something that is often taught from childhood, but as common as it should be, it is saddening that a whole lot of adult don’t even know half of how to take proper care of themselves to feel good on the inside and outside.

This is why I put together a comprehensive post on how to take proper care of your body.

Taking proper care of your body has a great impact on how you feel and function in your overall activities

32. Waking up at the same time

This is one of the self care habits that can be a total game changer for your overall routine.

One benefit of waking up at the same time is that it helps you to build a solid daily routine.

Imagine that you were able to ace your first task of the day which of course is waking up at the first sound of the alarm.

That alone already sets you apart for a productive day and having a clear cut day with so much positive energy is one underrated self care habits that we all should be aware of and bear in mind.

33. Going to bed at the same time

Before my self discovery journey started, I was so guilty of going to bed at any time of the night. And anytime in my case always mean late hours of the night.

Sometimes as late as 12 am! How unhealthy can that be! Instead of being well rested, I usually wake up with a banging headache because now, I’m trying to play catch up with my morning.

This unhealthy routine can be counter productive to other healthy ones because it just sets the wheel off to a long string of bad habits.

34. Skin care

Do you know that your skin is the largest organ in the body? It is the organ that serves as a protective covering to the other organs and tissues of the body.

It is therefore common sense to treat our skin with so much love and care. Less expensive ways that we can treat our skin well is by;

drinking water often (that was our no 1 remember!),
having regular showers,
choosing healthier food options, and of course
sunscreen to protect the skin from the harshness of ultra violent rays.

35. Meal planning

Any person who has a family to cater to will agree with me that this is one less talked about but difficult part of running a family.

When I got married, the mere thought of what we would have for breakfast, lunch and dinner gave me mild anxiety.

I always loath the idea of having to meal plan and cook. When I was living alone, I could always wing this and just eat out or eat whatever was available (this of course is bad bad habit).

When you meal plan, it shows that you value your body and what goes inside it. Even people who are plant moms and dads plan on the nutrient and care they should give their plants to help it grow optimally.

So to show yourself the best care, planning what you will eventually eat or put into your system should be non negotiable.

36. Chores/ De-clutter

Sometimes when you feel so much heaviness and you can’t seem to place your hands on where the problem is coming from, maybe it is about time for a de-clutter and cleaning spree in your environment.

When you clean your environment and let go of some unused things that you own, you feel so much lightness and this is a valued form of self care.

37. Dental care

Our oral hygiene is very important because our mouth is the gateway to which things get into our system.

It is important to always take care of this space.

Simple everyday activities like brushing, rinsing after a meal and flossing can go a long way in making us feel refreshed and confident.

38. Finances/ Budget

On a light note, do you know that there is something called ‘Moneymycin’? (This is of course something I coined up). This is an imaginary drug that when administered makes you feel so much better and well.

Have you ever felt sick, but felt so much better when you received a money alert from someone or from a client?

That is Moneymycin at work! You feel so much better when you have money to solve your monetary needs. Don’t get me wrong please, there are of course problems that money can’t solve, but you would agree with me that a large number of the problems we have can be solved by money.

These are the kind of problems I’m talking about. Therefore it is important to master the art of making money and back it up by the art of budgeting, keeping and investing money to grow it so that we all can live a financially free and independent life.

39. No sugar

Sugar as sweet as it tastes is said to be a silent killer. I believe this is because of the sickness called Diabetes as it has to do with high level of sugar in the blood.

If staying away from sugar will not cause any health effect then It should be a good self-care habit to emulate.

40. No caffeine

I feel like I’m walking on troubled waters here because this is one favourite drink of today’s adult. But remember most of the things I talk about here are mainly out of my own personal experience that is why I always make reference to myself.

The idea of self care habits is to create peace, calm and overall happiness, and if you are very familiar with the outcomes of taking caffeinated drinks you will know that it causes insomnia, restlessness, nervousness and an increased heart rate.

This can be very counter productive to all that we’ve been talking about here. But if you must take caffeine so badly, you can do it in measurable and minimized quantity.

41. No alcohol

Having worked in the health sector for a couple of years, alcohol has always presented as a risk factor for a couple of sickness and diseases.

Just like with other things, too much of something is bad. But if a substance as much as presents a risk to my well-being and overall health, trust me to stay away from it.

42. Whole foods/veggies

Earlier on in this article, we talked about the importance of putting the right nutrients in your system. I have observed a great deal how human beings care for their pets and plants, but when it comes to doing the same for ourselves, we give the barest minimum. This shouldn’t be.

One of the ways to show that you love and care for yourself is to nourish your body with whole foods and veggies. They are of course loaded with so much valuable nutrients and can help lower blood sugar.

In conclusion

I believe this list was quite exhaustive. One of the purpose of writing this post was not to fill it up with shallow things like;

paint your nails,
do your make up and
do your hair…no!

These things are important. But I wanted to draw to your attention some of the necessary but overlooked self care habits that if done right, can make a whole lot of difference to how your self care game can change for the better.

If you enjoyed this article, kindly share with your friends and loved ones, and if you think I missed out a salient point, do point it out in the comment section below let’s rub minds together.

OK friends, until next time, remain blessed!

42 SELF CARE HABITS TO FEEL YOUR BEST