Getting wrapped up in the day to day nightmare of school, work and sleep eventually turns ominous and ruins the sacred “you time” in your life. Recognizing the importance of time for yourself marks the first step towards loving yourself and taking pride in your actions. Stress compounds itself and allowing stress to take over all your actions degrades your quality of life. Generally thought cliché, saying that you have to love yourself before you love someone else holds indefinitely true. When you give yourself room to grow, you will quickly yearn to have this journey with other people.
Taking care of yourself definitely reigns highest on the list of first steps to take.
Treating yourself often sounds scary and makes people think they wouldn’t get everything done but engaging in some type of relaxation actually works wonders. It does not have to take an enormous amount of time—just what you want to give. In fact, it can even change your life.
I often get buried in work. Exam materials always prove to be a bigger beast to me than any other overwhelming tasks. I tend to think that I should spend every waking moment studying material days in advance for exams. Coming in prepared always gives me the result I want but often times, this creates days where I don’t treat myself well at all. Downing caffeine and a couple snacks before putting my nose in books for hours on end—never seeing the sun. Although my grades still looked pretty good, I dreaded exam time when I felt like I could get away from the crushing blow of the studying responsibility. I learned that little breaks to do things I enjoy made studying far less dreadful. I always save getting my nails done for an exam week and treat this luxury as a break for myself. Going to the gym or going on a run in the sun gives you back your time and makes sure you don’t feel trapped in hours of studying.
Taking measures to do things that make you feel rejuvenated can radically change your day.
Just like we set aside time for the homework assignment we have to do, self-love needs to be treated the same way. Even just a one-minute meditation on a crazy morning will reset you for the day and chances are it will not make you late at all. Using an agenda (especially a cute one) will insure that you schedule time in for your time. When you reflect on your day, it certainly should make you consider what a change time could make for you. Re-centering yourself, with even unconventional methods of meditation, can ensure that you have enough headspace to respond responsibly and with a clear mind during the interactions in the time ahead.
Defining what activities make you love yourself proves liberating on its own.
Imagine listing out your goals and actually accomplishing them—it works wonders. Getting creative with how you treat yourself has limitless opportunities. Treating myself by getting my nails done has to be my all-time favorite thing to do to make myself feel back on top of the world. You can’t go wrong with painting on a face mask, painting your toes or deep conditioning your hair. Self-love is actually quite unconventional these days.
Buy paint brushes, colored pencils or crayons and make something or color a coloring book. If you can’t even draw stick figures right, hit the gym and feel the burn. Just like any other “me-time” activity, setting aside time to actually get your tired butt over there is the only way you’ll ever actually make the effort to go. Cook a scrumptious—veggie or indulgent—meal; gather ingredients and follow your favorite recipe. Engaging in any kind of process can provide catharsis. Seeing a few ingredients blend together as a delicious product you call your own, will fill you with a sense of accomplishment. Find your favorite scent of essential oil and make soap. Thinking outside the box gives creativity a rewarding result.
At times, life can feel like we can never get out of its way. Take it upon yourself to enjoy the little things in life and make time for yourself. Set moments aside to show yourself love and appreciation. Life, without a little pampering or creativity, grows laborious and boring. Find something that makes you happy and choose to do it with the intent of feeling more grounded and prepared to take on everyday life. Take a break.
