The Self-Care Mom

Try these self-care night ideas you can implement on a Friday night or any day of the week.

Whether you’re planning to focus more on your health this year or simply looking for ways to implement better daily routines, it’s important that you throw in time for yourself as well. A simple bedtime routine might do the trick, and here’s what you need to know before you begin. 

What are some self-care ideas?

There are various self-care ideas you can try throughout the week that can help improve the way you look and feel about yourself. These 5-minute self-care options are a great way to start. 

Another way you can add time for yourself is by breaking down your routine into different times of the day. Whether you’re planning to implement self-care into your morning, afternoon, or evening routine, you’ll need to look into what times work best for you. For some, mornings are one of the best times to make time for self-care. Others feel the evening is easier to work time for themselves. 

Regardless of what time works best for you, adding a mom self-care routine that focuses on your needs is key to improving the way you view yourself and others around you. 

Some of the key ways you can make use of the time you have set aside for yourself is by adding rest and relaxation to your list. Whether you decide to pick up a book or review materials for an upcoming project, it’s up to you to decide how you’d like to spend that time. 

What does a self-care night look like? 

For those who struggle with finding time for themselves throughout the day, a nighttime self-care routine is ideal. 

A self-care night is a time when you disconnect from everything outside of your home – from your phone, TV shows, the news, etc. This is the time you invest to do things that make you smile. This is the time you can focus on your well-being and the things that make you smile.

You can create a self-care night checklist of fun self-care activities you enjoy. These activities should help you relax before hitting the bed. You can make a list of self-care night ideas such as:

• Taking a warm bath
• Looking through a magazine
• Reading pages from a book
• Listening to soothing music

You can choose to throw in beauty self-care ideas like a face mask, a hair mask, or a moisturizer. This can help you unwind and improve your hair and/or skin. 

What can I do after a stressful day? 

Stressful days aren’t the easiest to overcome. With the help of a self-care night routine, you can train your mind and body to focus on the things that can be controlled. When you’re looking to overcome a stressful day, you can P.R.E.P. yourself before calling it a night. Here’s how: 

Preparing for the following day is another way you can relieve stress. By doing this, you are reminding yourself that better days lie ahead. 

Resting your eyes while the music plays in the background can be a great start to refreshing your thoughts after a stressful day. 

Exercising the stress away is one of the best ways to relieve the tension. 

Pampering yourself before going to bed can help you feel refreshed after a stressful day.

S.T.A.R. self-care night ideas you can implement anytime during the week include: 

• Stretching your body to relieve the tension in your muscles
• Taking 5 minutes to write down good things that happened throughout the day
• Arranging things in your living space
• Running a warm bath to wash away your negative thoughts

Planning a self-care night with friends

Hanging out with friends is considered self-care for the soul because it gives you the opportunity to unwind with those you love. Surrounding yourself with others can improve your mood and give you the chance to be your true self. Self-care ideas for you and your friends to do at night include going out for dinner or cooking something together, going to see a movie, exploring a neighborhood together, or having a spa night.

Seeing your friends at least once a week can help reduce stress and depression. Friendships have a good influence on your health as well.

Creating a self-care night checklist for staying in

Staying in can be rewarding when you’re looking to have alone time. With the help of a self-care checklist, you can begin your journey into rediscovering the simple things in life. 

It might some cliche, but this is something you should always keep in mind: Just as you recharge your electronic devices, it’s important that you recharge yourself. 

Your body can’t be always on-the-go. It needs to rest as well. When you give yourself the space to breathe, you’re giving your body a chance to recover its energy. 

This is why self-care ideas for mental health are also important. Staying active is important, but you still need to make rest a priority, too. 

Other ways to help your mental health include:

• Staying connected with loved ones without the need to be on your phone all the time;
• Doing activities that help you relax before bed;
• Choosing healthy options without eliminating the tempting ones;
• Practicing gratitude and being grateful for the tough times as well; and 
• Setting goals throughout forgetting your priorities.  

Being able to find loved ones on social media can be a blessing. Reconnecting with an old friend might bring your more opportunities. However, you can’t allow those connections to become a distraction. 

The same goes for staying active. Whether you choose to follow a diet plan or a set of exercise videos, you’ll need to remind yourself of the value of resting, too. 

Your mental health depends on how you view things in your life. If you’re constantly limiting yourself – your needs and your wants – then are you actually living? Remember to be grateful for the things in your life – good or bad. Everything that happens in life has a purpose. Also, you can set goals without forgetting to focus on your priorities. You’ll just have to remind yourself of the value in not leaving your priorities fall behind to reach your goals. 

Recognizing the power of self-care is a blessing. However, not a lot of people use it to their advantage. As a parent, it’s important to focus on the things that help you unwind after a long day. For this reason, a self-care night routine is a must. Understanding how to properly relieve the stress, and helping the state of your mental health – this all ties into taking care of yourself and your needs. 

Listening to your body is key. The more you focus on what your body needs from you, the easier it will be to implement a self-care routine that works for your lifestyle. It’s up to you to figure out what you need the most, and ways you can begin adding more of it to your day-to-day.