Sprinkling Seeds: 8 Self-Care Ideas You Can Add To Your Daily Routine

You’ve seen the people who make a big deal about self-care — the influencer with a 20-step skincare routine. The friend who does yoga and meditation for an hour a day. The mom who somehow finds time for a weekly bath complete with candlelight and fancy soap… etc. 

Everyone likes the idea of taking more time to relax and prioritize their own comfort and needs. 

However…

These people paint self-care as a whole lifestyle change — which can feel impossible to achieve when work and/or studies consume the majority of your time and energy! And the energy that remains is split up among your friends and family who want to catch up, chores that need to be done, and a million other projects and errands that consume your time. 

You only have so much time in a day and expecting to completely remodel your life will only leave you overwhelmed and disappointed.

It feels like passing by a house with a garden in full bloom, with flowers of every color bathing in the sunlight and soaking up water. You find yourself frustrated and wondering how they found the perfect formula to grow such a healthy, full garden, and how you’d ever have the time to plant and maintain so many flowers. 

Redefining self-care

The truth is, nobody can grow a garden overnight. 

The most beautiful gardens come from the sprinkling of seeds over time, each seed slowly soaking up water and sunlight and blossoming into a thriving flower.

Your mental health is your garden, and small efforts throughout the day to prioritize what makes you feel happy and relaxed are the seeds and sunlight that will allow it to thrive.

Just as you don’t need 10 hours, 30 plants, and a million tools to grow a garden, you don’t need an hour a day of free time to begin your self-care journey. 

Your mental health is your garden, and small efforts throughout the day to prioritize what makes you feel happy and relaxed are the seeds and sunlight that will allow it to thrive.

Why self-care works

• Practicing self-care makes you more mindful, meaning you become more aware of your needs, emotions, and the things that make you happy.

• Mindfulness is extremely effective at reducing stress, anxiety, and depression. 

• You have something to look forward to each day, even if it’s just 5 minutes every morning drinking your coffee in peace. 

Success at anything comes down to the small things you do consistently.

So in case you were wondering, it is definitely worth your time to take care of your mental health a little bit more each day. There are numerous activities under the category of self-care, and we have compiled some easy habits that don’t take more than 5 minutes to add to your day. 

8 self-care activities you can add to your daily routine 

1. Mindful commute: Practice mindfulness on your commute to work. Instead of letting your thoughts run ahead to what you have to get done, put on your favorite music and become aware of the exact moment you are living in. Pay attention to the sound of the music, the temperature (and the road, of course), and give yourself permission to feel at ease before your day begins. 

2. Set intentions: In the morning, set a simple intention, or goal, for your mindset for the day. It can be as simple as “I will take notice of the beautiful nature around me today,” or “I will talk to myself with patience and kindness today,” or maybe “I will take the steps necessary to block out distractions and find my focus.” If you have time, you can write your intention in a journal, but if not, you can just keep it in your mind throughout the day.

3. Calm start: No supplies or new habits needed for this one — just a small change to your morning routine. Find a quiet place in your home or outside and take your morning coffee or tea to drink there instead of taking it to go. Commit to eliminating all distractions and spending at least 5 minutes there. Focus on the comforting aroma, the taste of each sip, and the texture and temperature on your tongue. Savor it. If necessary, communicate to those around you that this is your solitary “me” time—  a simple boundary that will give you the peaceful reset you deserve before the day begins. 

4. Sunday snack prep: When our schedules are full, meals and snacks become a last-minute decision which is often based on what’s convenient, not what we want to eat. You don’t have to do a whole meal prep, but take 10 minutes to make little bags of your favorite fruits, crackers, or other snacks that you can easily grab from the fridge or pantry for a pick-me-up throughout the week.

5. Find a scent that brings you to your happy place, and make sure you smell it everyday. This can be a candle, a lotion, a scented hand sanitizer, or a hygiene product. It may seem too small to make a difference, but our brains form strong memories through scent, so a smell you associate with calm and joy serves as a reminder that you deserve happiness even on the busiest day. 

6. Good things jar: Put a jar in your room or at your desk. Every day, write something good that happened or that you are grateful for on a piece of paper and place it in the jar. This can be during your lunch break, once you get home, or before you go to bed. Not only is this a simple way to practice gratitude daily, but it’s a collection of the happy things in your life which you can read through anytime you need a pick-me-up. 

7. Reminder note: Think of an area of your life in which you experience anxiety or self-doubt, and write yourself a note with an affirmation and/or reality check on the situation. For example, if you feel overwhelmed at work, you might write “I am a capable problem solver who is valued in my workplace,” and stick it in your desk drawer. Or, if you have to attend a stressful family event, you might write “I will set boundaries to keep my inner peace,” and place the note in your car or bag. 

8. Don’t pressure yourself to do all of these things! You only have so much time in a day and expecting to completely remodel your life will only leave you overwhelmed and disappointed. Pick a few of these habits that apply to your needs and schedule and try to make them a consistent part of your routine. 

On top of the benefits from these individual actions, the increased self-awareness and mindfulness you’ll gain from exploring self-care will water your mental health garden and give you bright blooms of calm and confidence. 

So make 5 minutes for yourself today, whether through mindful coffee-drinking, intention-setting, or note-writing, and enjoy the success of having taken the first steps toward a life filled with self-care and self-love! 

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Learn more

Tending to your emotional wellbeing benefits you mentally and physically. More and more people are discovering the benefit of regular counseling sessions as part of self-care. Contact us to find out if therapy could boost your self-care plan.

Therapy Is Self-Care