Mental health has become a buzzword in the last few years. The conversation around mental health has evolved from being taboo to something people make memes about. The conversation has also acknowledged that self-care is something we humans often forget to practice on a day-to-day basis. Your self care routine should include both your physical and mental health.
Self-care practices usually revolve around reducing stress and reminders to take care of ourselves. This includes things like eating healthy, teaching better sleep habits, and more. Stress can have a severe impact on both physical and mental health. If you’re looking to reduce stress and revise your self-care routine, here are some underrated things you can do.
Daily Body Care
Our bodies are what enable us to go through life. Our body is what allows us to go from place to place, do the things we love, and experience everything life has to offer. This is why it’s imperative to take care of your body as well as your emotional well-being. An excellent way to thank your body daily is to invest in a body care routine.
Buy indulgent soaps, scrubs, and lotions from premium quality brands. Grab yourself a stress-reliving CBD bath bomb from Happy Dance to give yourself a little spa day. Things like this can nourish your body and give it the care it needs to function for several more decades. It also helps you love yourself and your body as you grow older. For example, the B-Flat cream from Maelys Cosmetics is effective against scars and also tightens tissues while moisturizing the skin. Such products not only heal your body but also increase your self-confidence.
Physical Exercise
Our mental and physical health is intertwined. This is why people who face mental health difficulties are often asked to take up physical exercise. Exercise boosts dopamine and serotonin levels in our brain, which reduces how much stress we feel and makes us happier. If you’re not a gym person, you can search your smart TV or RoKu for the Openfit app and sign up! They have tons of classes to choose from including Xtend Barre with Andrea Rogers.
Many people try to make excuses that they don’t have the time available to make this commitment to fitness classes, but the truth is there is always time. You’ll be amazed at how much better you feel when you take up a physical exercise routine online.
The simplest method to get exercise into your self care routine is to start walking. Even a 30 min walk every day can help release the feel-good chemicals in your brain. Plus, getting outdoors with fresh air and greenery also has positive effects on your mental health.
Sleep Routine
Sleep should be a top priority in your self care routine. Most of us have very bad sleeping habits and practices. This is why there has been a recent rise in the number of patients with insomnia. To build better sleep habits, the first thing you have to do is to get screens out of your bedroom. Screens emit blue light that signals to your brain that it’s still daytime.
To signal to your brain that it’s time to sleep, stop looking at screens at least two hours before you go to bed. This way, you can feel sleepy naturally and healthily. You can opt to start practices like meditation that will further support your mental health before you go to bed. Getting 6-8 hours of sleep will go a long way in ensuring you are at the pinnacle of your health.
Gardening
Research has shown that our mental health benefits from seeing the color green. While gardening won’t directly impact your emotional stability, having plants around can help your mental health in the long term as part of your self care routine. If you see enough greenery in and around your house, you can end up feeling less negative emotions and more at peace.
Start a garden with whatever resources you have if you don’t feel like gathering a gardening kit. Building a schedule to take care of your plants and ensuring they stay healthy can feel comforting as well. Humans like timetables and rules, and giving yourself the familiarity of that routine can be an emotional comfort.
Helping Others
When you help someone else, your brain is flooded with happy hormones. This translates to you being in a comfortable emotional frame, which leads to less stress. By volunteering at homeless shelters or animal shelters, you can reduce your stress and help make the world a better place at the same time. People who take advantage of homeless shelters can’t afford the same mental health resources you can.
You can even offer to give them a shoulder to cry on or a patient ear if you don’t think you are healthy enough to do any physical work. These kinds of practices in your self care routine at home will help you gain perspectives on your life and improve your mental health and physical health. This is especially true if you offer to help out with more at your chosen charity as time goes by.
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