When we’re at school, it is all too easy to forget to take a moment to step back and engage in a little self-care therapy. Whether we’re tied between our coursework, extracurriculars, or balancing a family, friend, and social life, we often forget the importance of segregating a few moments a day entirely for our own pleasure, decompressing, and relaxation. If you’re in the market for a bit of self-care, this article is for you! Find out our favorite ways to reward ourselves here…

Let’s Self-Care!

Meditation: The task sounds more intimidating than the actual practice itself.. most people envision meditation, gratitude, and mindfulness practices as an hour-long activity requiring you to sit on a yoga mat and breathe. Well, we’re here to debunk this myth! Gratitude and meditation practices make take just a few short minutes, may include a thought or two, a journaling exercise, or some breathing, but do not need to be considered a huge activity. We encourage you to do so when you wake up or before bed, and especially by putting your phone down and “unplugging” to do so.

Say No: Learning how to say no is so beneficial for your self-care! We often feel pressured by “FOMO” to attend any and all events while in high school and throughout college. However, if you’re reaching burnout or a point where the stress of balancing all activities is beginning to outweigh the social benefit, it’s important to set boundaries with yourself. Remember, saying no does not need to be viewed as a negative but instead as a beneficial moment to allow yourself to recharge and attain an independent moment to relax.

Engage in and Allow Yourself Breaks: Using breaks to actually break from schoolwork, social events, or activities is the best way to recharge your body and brain for a great rest of the day. Breaks lead to better productivity, so they should be viewed as equally important to the moments and hours spent being productive.

• Extra Tip: While taking a break, we encourage you to go for a walk, exercise, stretch, practice yoga, grab a snack, make a smoothie, walk to a cafe for a cup of coffee or tea, call a friend, take a bath, paint your nails, do a face mask or skincare routine, light a candle, listen to music, listen to a podcast, or engage in a small activity solely for the joy of it! Above all, make sure that your “break” isn’t a secret disguise while you’re still glued to a screen. Put that phone down!

Input “Self-Care” Into Your Schedule: By actually documenting moments of self-care as events on your schedule, you will be more likely to “complete” it. Visually and physically blocking out time for self-care will help you practice it every day! Start by identifying the points in the day where you could best utilize a break and then block it in: we recommend in the morning before you start your day, in the middle, late afternoon prior to dinner, or before bed! Any of those will help break up your day and add in a little “treat.”

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Looking to relieve stress and how to do it? Find out how here!