Tips and tricks from our influencer community to help you relax & unwind.
As people, we’re often worried about all of life’s external factors – like studying for a test, preparing for a job interview, or simply just taking care of those around us daily. What is truly most important in life - and what is often overlooked - is taking care of yourself.
Practicing self-care may not come as easy for some as it does for others. We all live busy lives in our own ways, and it may feel challenging or stressful to think about making time for doing things for ourselves. Adopting a self-care routine, or just simply practicing self-care in moments throughout your day, can be greatly beneficial to your overall health and wellness.
Self-care looks different for everybody, so be sure to focus on what you and your body truly need when developing new habits. Below we have some tips, crafted with the help of our creator community, on ways that you can begin to self-care and de-stress this new year.
1. Journaling
Journaling is one way to help you to connect with yourself, your thoughts, your wants, your needs, and your desires. Journaling is often used to ground yourself, and for good reason. Taking a few minutes each day or a few days out of the week to check in with yourself through journaling can help to expand your own awareness, clarify your thoughts, and help to reduce stress and anxiety.
Journaling your thoughts and feelings not only allows you to fully express yourself with zero judgment, but it also allows you to focus on why you’re feeling the way you are and build a solution. Without fully explaining our feelings, we may not know why we feel the ways we do. By allowing ourselves to express our emotions through journaling, we are better able to figure out ways to improve our moods and incorporate new habits to live a healthier life.
Over time, with journaling, you’ll also begin to get to know yourself on a deeper level, boosting your own self-confidence and emotional intelligence, and setting yourself up for a happier and more mindful life.
2. Skincare/Haircare/Scalp Routine
There’s a saying that says, ‘When you look good, you feel good’, and we couldn’t agree more. Building a routine where you are taking good care of your skin, hair, and scalp is beneficial in more than just improving your appearance. Engaging or practicing a self-care routine has been clinically proven to help with reducing or eliminating stress and anxiety, as well as helping to increase happiness and overall hygiene.
What’s important when creating a self-care routine is that you’re using products that are benefitting you and your overall wellness, rather than products that may be counterproductive in doing so. All of our formulas at John Masters Organics are curated without harmful ingredients, such as silicones, sulfates, parabens, phthalates, synthetic dyes and fragrances, and artificial preservatives, so you can remain worry-free when focusing on your self-care.
3. Spending Time Outside
Nature, and especially the sun, have healing properties that can be extremely beneficial to our well-being. Soaking up the sun or getting natural light every day can help you to maintain a positive mood, relieve stress, and remain grounded throughout your day. Simply taking a walk at lunchtime or spending a few minutes watching the sunrise with your morning coffee can greatly increase your mood and overall health. Spending time outdoors is also known to help reduce stress, lower blood pressure, and overall boost your mood.
Nature can also improve your self-esteem and be a motivating factor for you to continue your physical wellness journey. If you have a hard time trying to get yourself moving or going to the gym, spending time outside can be one way you help yourself stay physically active.
4. Quality Time with Loved Ones (even furry friends)
Spending time with loved ones – yes, even those furry friends – is one way to help reduce stress and anxiety in our lives. Not only does spending time with loved ones help us to remain connected to those around us, but it also helps to combat feelings of loneliness and allows us to become more vulnerable and openly express our feelings, thoughts, and emotions. Spending time with loved ones also allows you to build a support system of people who you trust and can turn to when you need it.
If spending too much time with others isn’t your forte, spending time with your furry friends is also one way to de-stress and improve your mood. On the physical level, spending time with animals can help to lower heart rates and blood pressure, increase immune system functioning, and decrease levels of pain. On an emotional level, animals help to increase happiness, decrease loneliness, and ease stress and emotional pain.
It's also shown that spending time with loved ones and having strong relationships with others leads to a longer lifespan than those who lack strong connections.