How do you handle stress? For me, I prioritize self-care. Stress is inevitable and I’ve found that one of the best ways to relieve it is by taking care of yourself through your health. Just recently, my mom and I found this hair spa treatment on sale, so we decided to try it out. For the first time in a while, I felt completely stress-free, just sitting there, letting someone else take care of me. I didn’t realize how much tension I held in my body until the massage started. The warm oil, the various circular movements on my pressure points, and the feeling of my hair being completely weightless–it was like every little worry disappeared. For once, I wasn’t thinking about deadlines, responsibilities, or anything else. I was just there in the present, relaxed and finally at peace.
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| My favorite Dr. Jart facemasks from Korea |
That memorable experience made me appreciate self-care even more. (I realize why so many people visit the spa so often) I’ve always been keen on taking care of myself, even if it’s just for a few minutes a day. My skincare routine is what I value most. Every morning after waking up and every night after showering, I spend ten minutes applying toner, serum, and moisturizer. It’s such a small habit, but it makes a huge difference. It’s not just about having clear skin, but about having a moment to finally slow down.
People always say self-care is important, but it’s easy to brush it off when life gets busy. Yet it’s these small acts, like getting a massage, taking care of your skin, or even just laying in bed with a face mask, that are most necessary. Everyone deserves to feel good about themselves, especially when they’ve been overwhelmed. Even when I’m feeling perfectly fine, I never miss the chance to put on a relaxing playlist as I apply my newest face mask, taking some time to rest and embrace that peace.
Hi Emily. There is no need for me to agree with you on the topic of self-care, as the importance of self-care is almost undeniable. My idea of self-care can vary from time to time depending on what I feel. Sometimes, I feel tired and bored, which makes me want to experience something with minimal movement and preferably in the comfort of my own bed. So, I choose to either read or watch something to help me relax and decompress. But oftentimes, I get so tired that my body simply feels like collapsing. On those occasions, I take a nap as every synapse in my body is begging me to just sleep. Now as for watching something, I do plan on watching actual shows and videos rather than shorts. This is because I feel like watching something bigger can gain me an experience that can last a lifetime, as opposed to a short that I might likely forget. But anyway, I like how you organize your blog by talking about how you like to decompress and how you like to go to the spa with your mom and get facials. I personally cannot imagine willingly putting anything on my face to relax, but I do see the benefits of it. And while I am not a huge fan of spas and facials, I like how you describe a method of self-care as a small habit. After all, it is the small habits that can sometimes relieve a day’s worth of stress.
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ReplyDeleteHey Emily, all the self-care products you own look so cool! I’ve never seen a “Cryo Rubber” before. What does it do? In the picture provided you seem to have so many products! Do you have a favorite product? Also, do you have any specific recommendations for brands that are good in quality? I have self-care days too, usually on Saturday. Though I’m very familiar with skincare products like lotion, I’m not as familiar with items like face masks. Typically, I stick to homemade face masks since they are both inexpensive and easy to make. However, it would definitely be cool if I got an entire spa-set like you have. I completely agree with you about the importance of self-care. Though skin-care is a good way to do this, other methods I utilize are listening to music, petting my cat, or working out. It is also true that people deserve to feel good about themselves. Such a small habit truly does make a big difference. Getting to slow down our day reduces the feeling of stress by a lot. Thanks for your blog!
ReplyDeleteI think self-care is important, but it depends on the type of self-care. When I take time to myself to relax, I find it hard to get out of my “relaxing mood” and get back into a mood to work. For instance, whenever I take some time off to watch a movie or video, I find it hard to stop watching and get back to work.
ReplyDeleteI think the best forms of self-care have time limits and require active focus—like your example of skincare. You can only spend so much time on skincare before you are effectively forced to stop (you can’t keep applying lotion to one area), so it gets you to return to work. By contrast, it’s easy to get sucked into a rabbit hole when watching other movies/videos. Likewise, skincare requires some active focus—by contrast, watching videos is a passive activity. What other activities do you like doing to relax?
Hey Emily, self care is definitely something that should be both prioritized and loved by everyone. Everyone has their own self care routines for themselves, based on exactly who they are as a person and what they love to do, but the idea of self love and care has to be something everybody prioritizes. I, for example, take care of myself in many ways. Even in my very busy daily schedules, which sometimes leads me to go to bed at one or two in the morning, I always make sure to do my face wash, toner, exfoliant skincare routine before bed and after waking up, while shaving on each Sunday and Wednesday evening. Simple things like those let my body know that I’m taking care of it and give me time to think and relax. In other situations, I just sleep, sometimes I just eat, but whenever my mind knows I need it, I never prioritize things over taking care of myself.
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ReplyDeleteHey Emily! Reading your blog this week was a sort of wake-up call for me. Since the end of sophomore year, prioritizing my self-care has been a difficult mindset that I have neglected to achieve. Even the tasks that seem almost non-negotiable, like drinking water or getting eight hours of sleep have just been so out of reach for me. I love how you described that even through the bustle of everyday life, you take time to walk through your skincare routine because doing that one thing for yourself improves your stress levels and outlook. I believe that is the case with all the decisions that we, as humans, consciously make to better ourselves; just knowing that we have taken the time to do something for our own betterment proves to us that we are able to show up for ourselves even when others cannot. Through hardship, the consistency of self-care can allow us to take control of our lives, teaching us to stay calm through the storm. Just as you have prioritized your skincare, I plan to focus on obtaining restful sleep. No more 4:00 AM mornings and 1:00 AM bedtimes because my form of self-care will be to manage my time and health. Great job!