Even though I believe in taking out 1 hour each day for myself apart from my morning & evening rituals, I know that sometimes life can take a toll on you and you start to feel sad for no reason. Know that taking a day off just to care for yourself won't make you selfish. It will only help you to rejuvenate and handle life + people in a better way. In the last week of September, I had days where I was working normally on my laptop and started crying out of nowhere. I realized there was something I need to work on.
If you're feeling sad/frustrated/annoyed for no reason, then this blog post is something you need to go through right now! There is a high possibility that you are drained out and your cup isn't full but you are still pushing yourself to complete those assignments or helping other people.
Also, understand that there is nothing wrong with feeling sad. You emotions are the internal guidance system that serves as a little reminder for you to check-in with yourself. I have compiled a list of 5 big things + a lot of small Bonus actions that you can choose from to pamper yourself.
đĽ Ritual #1: Workout
Seems like a normal thing but trust me, this is what you need. By workout, I don't want you to hit the gym and sweat yourself (unless that's what you like doing). If you're not a person who works out regularly or doesn't like working out - I suggest you try new types of workout.
Go for Zumba if you don't like Cardio. Do a standing workout if you don't like doing workouts on a mat.
I am linking my personal favourite Youtube workouts if you want to check out and get inspired.
You might be thinking that self-care days should be days when you binge your fav. Netflix show and spend a whole day chilling in bed doing nothing. It can surely be that but you feel empty because you are not taking care of your divine vessel (your body) & your compass ( your mind).
Self-care activities, for me, are those that help me get back in touch with my body & my mind.
Working out also releases endorphins and makes you feel better. If you don't want to workout, you can always play a sport such as badminton, basketball, etc. that moves your body
đĽ Ritual #2: Journal
On days when I feel overwhelmed, I do two types of journaling. If you are new to journaling, it is basically writing down your thoughts on paper so that you can see them in front of you. I wrote a detailed blog post about journaling & 5 types of journal which you can refer to if you want to know more about journaling.
The two types of Journaling ways that I use are:
Brain Dump - In this type of journaling, you literally put down everything that is going on your mind on paper. This is my favourite type of journaling technique because you could be writing about all the things that you need to do and also about how to hurt you feel to see your ex moving on with someone new on the same freaking page. This allows you to relieve your mind from the burden of thoughts. It can be intimidating to do a brain dump, but I suggest you force yourself to the journal for at least 10 minutes and then it will naturally flow to you.
Gratitude Journal - In the times when you feel overwhelmed, you usually forget that there are things that are working out for you. That is why writing down all the things that do bring you happiness be it even for second helps you to shift your focus from the negative to positive since both of them co-exist in every situation. Write down 10 things you are grateful for and why.
đĽ Ritual #3: Social Detox
Most people today are drained out by feeling jealous at the things they see on social media. If your friend is running a successful business and you are stuck in rut, you are bound to feel the negative emotions and think that you are a failure (if you haven't worked on your mindset). In times like this, scrolling through more of social media won't help you, sweetie.
You need to get that phone away from you (after you put it on silent) and dive into a deep journaling session. Write down everything that is triggering you and ask yourself why do you feel like that. It also helps you work on your shadow self. If you don't know about shadow self, listen to Why someone/something is bothering you + how to deal with it?
đĽ Ritual #4: Dive into Learning
As I mentioned at the beginning of this blog post, I started crying out of nowhere and knew that there was a need for change. I decided to learn about witchcraft. When I did that, I realized that I had not been investing time in learning things I liked. That is why I felt unhappy because I was creating constantly but not consuming at all and it made me empty.
Thus, pick up a topic you always wanted to learn about. Watch YouTube videos/ read some books about it and make notes. Trust me, it will make you feel so satisfied.
đĽ Ritual #5: GYLT (Get Your Life Together)
There are some tasks that we all need to get done but we never come across doing them. Muchelle B calls it a life admin day. There might be things on your to-do that barely take 5 minutes to get done but you never do them and they keep compiling to a point where you think you have a lot to-do.
Take out 1 hour and do all the things that have been sitting on your to-do forever. This can be recharging your phone, clearing your desk of the clutter, organizing your wardrobe, etc. Set a timer for yourself so that you don't get swayed by the things you find while decluttering and get those to-dos crossed off your list. This will help you feel more in control of your life and relieve you from the mundane things that you need to get done.
Those were the 5 main self-care rituals you come back to whenever you feel that things are going out of control. But here is a BONUS love list for you to do if you want to squeeze in small self-care rituals in your daily routine:
Switch off the electric lights & light the room with candles
Take a relaxing bath
Dance to your playlist
Listen to podcasts/ Ted Talks
Drink that H2O
Read a book
Watch your favourite movie/tv show from your childhood
watch the sunrise/sunset
Groom your nails & hair
đBonus Tip
These are all short-term solutions to refill your cup. If you want a long-lasting system, schedule 1 hour every day where you either work out + do a skincare routine or you read a book, etc. If 1 hour every day seems too much for you, try scheduling one day/month as your self-care day. Make sure you schedule it on a day where you know you won't be caught off-guard by a meeting or a project. And then plan all the things that you would like to do on that day!
If you resonated with this post and you feel like someone needs to know about this, share this post with them. (That is you helping others to fill their cup).