Hi! My name is Franchesca and I’m so grateful that Sabrina asked me to contribute to her blog for her wellness series! Health and wellness are near and dear to my heart, so of course I responded with an immediate YES. I knew I wanted to share my top 7 self care tips with you.
But first, a little about me:
My professional background is in Psychology and Social Work, where my passion for mental and emotional health really found its roots. I’ve worn many hats throughout my working life from volunteer coordinator to youth advocate for homeless youth and young adults. Currently my most favorite role, is work-from-home mommy to my sweet 16 month old daughter.
While I am home with her, I am also building a health and wellness business where I help women find freedom in their fitness.
As a mother, wife and girl boss, I know first hand how crazy life can get in the day to day, especially when we aren’t taking care of ourselves the way we want to.
So today, we are going to talk about SELF CARE, one of my favorite topics!
I’m going to share my top 7 tips for keeping proper self-care habits.
Before we get going, I want to state that what we are after is not a perfect routine that gets followed exactly as planned, every single day. That would spiral us into more stress and more mom-guilt, which we simply do not need. As you read through these tips, some will stand out as super easy things to add into your day or week, those are the ones I’d recommend you focus on first!
Whatever you choose to take away from these tips, wrap them up in lots of grace!
So here are my top 7 self care tips:
1. Do ONE thing daily that makes you feel like YOU.
What are the things that you do that just make you feel like a bombshell? Or add that little extra pep in your step? Maybe it’s putting a little make up on before leaving to run errands, putting on your favorite jeans instead of yoga pants or getting up early to get some quiet time in. Somedays this might just be getting in a shower and that is perfectly acceptable! It’s important to remember who we are in the midst of all the hats we wear on a daily basis.
2. Establish a schedule or a routine.
My free spirits just started to sweat at the reference of a schedule, but stick with me! This does not have to be a minute to minute schedule of your day, just a simple routine to ensure you accomplish your MOST important things each day.
Having even a general idea of how the day will go, gives us so much more freedom and lessons the stress of the day to day.
3. Have quiet time that is your OWN.
This one right here is, in my opinion, the most important one. If you only have space in your schedule to implement ONE thing off this list, this is the one to start with.
It is so important to give our minds time to be still and get quiet. We are constantly on the go, thinking of all those in our home and keeping track of all the to-dos in our head that we operate on total overdrive most days. Giving our minds time to quiet down is not only beneficial to our sanity but for the physical makeup of our brains.
Find anywhere from 10-30 minutes (or more) to be still and alone. Some ideas for this are to do some quiet meditation, read a book, take a bath, drink some wine… whatever fits for YOU.
4. Find Support.
This can include other moms or just other lady friends. Whatever it looks like for you, find time where you can go out and be amongst other ladies and not just talk about mom things.
5. Get regular exercise.
This one is a non-negotiable for me. And I know, before we go off thinking we don’t have time because we are already so busy, I promise promise you can find 20 minutes in your day to move your body with or without your children. Maybe this is part of your morning quiet time or perhaps you go on a walk or run with your kiddos. Even better, do you have other mom or lady friends that you can invite to join you and knock two of these things off the list? Get creative and get those feel GOOD hormones pumping through your veins.
6. Go on a date with your spouse.
Because among all the other things on our list, our spouse still needs to be a priority. When we are connected to our spouse, we feel well cared for and loved. When we feel well loved we feel secure and confident in the other roles that we fill day today. If you’re like my husband and I, we tend to choose a date night in more than out, and that is okay! But we still have to make it a priority to get OUT of the house, just us at least once per month.
7. Get out of the house regularly.
The definition of “regularly” is going to look different for everyone. For me, I know that I need to get out of the house, alone, at least once per week. If I can’t get out alone, then my daughter and I need to be getting out of the house together several times per week. It keeps mommy sane and babies from getting stir crazy!
There you have it! These are my top 7 self-care tips for you to get started with. This truly is one of my favorite topics so I could go on and on forever.
All too often, we think that taking care of ourselves is a selfish act and we feel like that time should be spent serving other people or getting some house chore done. But we have to always remember that we are no good pouring from an empty cup! To best love and serve those around us, we have to fill our own cup first.
If you’re interested in more tips on self-care, join me in my next 14 day self-care challenge!
Check out my last Wellness Wednesday post about the health benefits of Maca here.
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