The Ultimate Self-Care Checklist
Self-care isn’t a selfish act — far from it. In fact, it might just prove to be a selfless thing you can do for yourself and others.
Maintaining a self-care checklist allows you to see if you’re doing your best to maintain a healthy mind, body, and emotions.
It’s not self-indulgent if the result is a more positive and realistic outlook which can spill over to other aspects of your life.
Creating Your Self-Care Checklist
There are eight identified areas of self-care by gurus who’ve studied this activity. Self-care can be manifested physically, emotionally, psychologically, professionally, socially, spiritually, environmentally, and financially.
That’s why today’s ultimate checklist aims to cover all eight areas with practical suggestions and resources (sometimes combining a couple or several of them).
We hope this post can guide you when you’re ready to make your daily self-care checklist.
1. Take a Break (Or Two!)
You should never let stress from work, chores, and other daily obligations get to you. Stress has a way of spilling over to other aspects of your life and ruining your day (or week).
So when you start feeling your stress levels rising, take a break. If it means taking a nap on your favourite soft furniture, stretched out on a sunny deck, or simply leaning back on your chair and closing your eyes for a bit, do it.
The top sleep clinics in Ottawa can accommodate sleep-deprived patients whose anxiety levels keep them awake, but you won’t have to spend money to take a nap when you feel like it. Learn to take a break from it all once in a while.
2. Streeetch!
You won’t have to be a certified yogi or yogini to reap the benefits of a good stretch. Unless you want to have the posture of a dancer, you can do simple body stretches and flexibility exercises in the meantime.
As most professional trainers will tell you, there are good and bad ways to stretch. Don’t do sudden or complicated moves that you haven’t done before to prevent torn ligaments, painful hamstrings, and other injuries.
The secret is in doing light stretches daily to keep your muscles flexible and your entire body strong.
3. Be Conscious of Your Eating Habits
Good nutrition and hydration rank high in a lot of people’s self-care checklists, but they’re also the toughest items to follow. Gustatory temptations can wreak havoc on your healthy diet if you aren’t careful.
Expert nutritionists in Ottawa can guide and support your journey to healthier eating based on your body composition and lifestyle. If you’re too busy to cook, they can also put together a custom-made and nutritious meal plan for you.
And always stay hydrated throughout the day by drinking eight glasses of clean water every day. Doing this can keep you mentally alert and speed up your metabolism.
4. Do Your Skincare Routine
When you look good, you feel good (and vice versa). That’s why most people get regular facial services not just to keep their skin smooth and flawless but to feel pampered and taken care of.
But you don’t have to go to a spa and spend money to look and feel your best. Simply sticking to your daily skincare routine (and adding a few luxurious tweaks here and there) can already uplift your mood and help you see yourself in a better light.
So don’t listen to people who lump skincare with vanity or self-indulgence because you and your skin know better!
5. Go On a Leisurely Walk
You don’t need to live near the beach or have gorgeous meadows near your house. A quick stroll on your front lawn or backyard can already prove to be a mood-lifter.
Walking in nature can also help you meditate or do self-assessment. For this activity to be effective, it’s best to leave distracting devices behind and go somewhere quiet and relatively uncrowded.
It doesn’t matter if you go walking after a meal, during your lunch break, or upon waking. Just put on your walking shoes and go.
6. Make Yourself a Cup of Tea (or Coffee)
Yup, that’s it. Make yourself a cup of your favourite tea or coffee, and that’s already a world of comfort you can hold in both hands.
Don’t underestimate centuries’ worth of people who’ve indulged in this particular self-care routine all over the world. The aroma, warmth, and health benefits that a cup of brew offers can relieve stress in an instant.
7. Unplug Everything Before Sleeping
Unwinding after a long, hard day at work is not a luxury but a must. For this to be effective, you’ll need to put boundaries on both your professional and social lives.
Press pause on all devices that you use at work or to catch up on people. Then go unplugged: pick up your guitar or favourite book so you can enjoy music and literature that’s not from a rectangular gadget.
And to truly enjoy a rejuvenating sleep, learn to stick to a nightly routine that doesn’t involve looking at your laptop or phone. That way, when your entire body relaxes into your mattress, you can have the restful slumber you deserve.