You Gotta Nourish To Flourish | My Self-Care Routine

Let’s talk about self-care. So important and so underestimated most of the time. Because a day all about you and what you need might seem selfish but the word ‘selfish’ has such a negative connotation and that’s not what self-care is about. Having a self-care routine is all about consciously thinking about your mental health and relaxing. A self-care routine can be different for everyone but since most people seem to forget to have self-care days, I thought I would share my very own self-care routine!

「 Morning 」

If I know I want to do a full on self-care routine on a specific day, I make sure to go to bed early the day before. I do this to have a good night of sleep. Sleep = life and soooo good for your body and mind. When having a good night of sleep, I wake up the next morning at a reasonable hour (read: before nine o’clock). Immediately when I wake up, I always have breakfast. I just need to feed my body to conquer the day, and don’t forget to take my vitamins.

After having breakfast, watching the news (to stay up to date), catching up on social media and checking my blog, I take a shower. Most days I take very quick showers, but on self-care days I take a longer one. I scrub, shave, wash, wash my hair, condition my hair and after lotion up my full body, just to feed my skin after the shower.

In my shower you’ll find:

Gisou Hair Wash » Gisou Conditioner » Love Beauty & Planet Scrub » Biodermal P-CL-E Oil (after the shower)

After finishing my shower, I will start my skincare routine. Hydrating my skin is so important and I have finally found a combination of products that work best for my skin. Maybe that’s something I should share in a separate blog post.

My favorite skincare products:

The Ordinary Marine Hyaluronics » Mario Badescu Facial Spray » Biodermal P-CL-E fluide » Biodermal Hydraplus

「 Afternoon 」

After all that, there’s a big chance it’s the afternoon already. So, during the afternoon I try not to go constantly on my phone. I can get lost on Instagram or Pinterest. There’s so much more to do then be on my phone, so on during my self-care routing, I will leave my phone by my side and not look at it. For me it has always been hard to drink enough water, so I try to make a habit of checking in with myself if I’ve drank water in the last half hour. Because hydrating yourself is so important, for your mind (to concentrate better) but also for your skin.

To feel level headed, I always have to have clean surroundings. So, that’s when the cleaning part comes in. Cleaning my room with loud music or a movie on is the best. This makes time pass even faster and my room will be clean in no time. After, I will most likely have lunch since cleaning is some kind of workout.

Lunch will end with me going on my MacBook and browsing different social media platforms to get inspired (or flip through a magazine). I love to read stories and see other people’s photographs and throw my own spin on it. The things that will come to mind, I will write down in my notes and maybe even write a couple blog post if I feel like it. For the photos, I love to create hidden boards on Pinterest with the photography inspiration for that specific blog post. Working on my blog still feels to me a time for myself and relaxing. When it doesn’t in the future, I will most definitely stop because then it won’t be fun anymore.

「 Evening 」

After feeling relaxed and productive at the same time, my self-care is coming to an end. An evening like this always starts with family dinner, preferably healthy with lots of vegetables. Eating healthy makes me feel good from the inside, just like drinking a lot of water. That’s also the time to catch up with what everyone was up to that day and what the plans are for the rest of the week.

Working out has become a big part of my life over the past years. It’s a way to let go of stress and clear my mind. Some days I feel like doing one of my own schedules and other days I do a Zumba workout or one of Chloe Tings HIIT videos. What’s better than having a workout and immediately after have a shower? Well, nothing. I hate sweating so after working out I just have to take a shower. So if I did a workout, I wash my face, take shower (a quick one), put on my pajamas and get into bed. I have a habit of scrolling through different social media apps when I am in bed and it’s a bad habit. It’s so much better to not look into your screen before bed. So, when I want to sleep well, I read a book before bed and maybe even try to meditate (sometimes while listening to an ASMR video).

What I’ve been reading before bed:

This Is Not A Fashion Story by Danielle Bernstein » Nice Girls Don’t Get The Corner Office by Lois P Frankel » No Filter by Jamie Li

Having a self-care day is so important. We can’t just constantly go go go. We have to take a breath and take care of ourselves. That’s why I try to do this more and more. Of course, I can’t do my full self-care routine on the days I am at the office. But I can do part of it to make myself feel better. And no, it’s not selfish to work on yourself. It’s necessary and very important. So, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Of course everyone’s self-care routine is different. Hopefully mine inspired you to have a self-care day as well! Do you have a specific self-care routine? What does it look like? 

Love,

Neeltje