Self-care is a wholistic endeavor. It includes your mental, physical and spiritual wellbeing. Balancing these needs is easier than you might think. Your mind, body and soul want to be in a state of equilibrium - they feed off of each other. Sometimes, the hardest part is getting started, but once you feel the endorphins, dopamine and other positive effects of self-care, this state of harmony and bliss will become addictive. Take your skin, for example. It requires care from the inside and out, from the spiritual and the physical. These four sources of care will lead to much more than just beautiful skin:
Nutritious foods feed your skin from the inside. Eating a healthy diet benefits you on every level, from your brain function to physical performance and appearance. Skin-loving foods & drinks: water, nuts, pulses, leafy greens, flax seed, watermelon & tomatoes (for sun protection) green tea, turmeric tea, pomegranate juice or other antioxidant-packed beverage, and we can't stress this enough, drink more water.
Nourishing, organic, antioxidant products like ours, feed and protect your skin from the outside. Having a ritual of care for your skin isn't a luxury, it's a necessity. Skin performs many critical functions such as regulating your temperature, eliminating waste and keeping you protected from harmful external factors. Skin-loving essential topicals: humectants (water) & lipids (nutrition). Try our hyaluronic acid-based serum + vegan collagen toners and our nourishing moisturizers.
Physical exercise is great for stress-relief, overall health and for the state of your skin. The increased blood flow that results from a workout, carries precious oxygen and nutrients to your skin cells and removes harmful waste in the process. Skin-loving workouts: cardio helps flush out toxins and feeds the skin in the process. Yoga, and weight-resistance exercises improve muscle tone which firms the appearance of skin texture.
Mental exercise can take many forms. It can be spiritual in nature, such as prayer and meditation; via thoughtful mental practices like mindfulness techniques and breathing exercises; and by stimulating the brain through music, art and other media. Skin-loving mindfulness: All of these exercises are nourishment for the mind & soul but they also release happy chemicals in the brain that have a positive impact on the skin.
Great skin aside, all four of these practices help reduce stress and that is incredibly important because stress is not just a feeling or a state of mind. Stress physically manifests itself in your body as destructive free-radicals that can lead to disease, premature aging and unhappiness. So, if starting these self-care practices is the hardest part, how does one start? The answer is, one step at a time. Start today by doing 1 thing from each of these four sources of care. Try this beginner's level, 10 minute intro:
Get up and make yourself a cup of green tea, drink a glass of water, or eat some berries. Duration: 2 mins. (4 mins. if you're making tea)
Moisturize one part of your body. Your hands, arms, neck, face, any part of your skin. Massage the product into your skin to increase circulation. Duration: 2 min.
Walk around your entire house at a brisk pace, like you are taking a quick tour. If you have stairs, go up and down once. If you don't, repeat walk a few times. Duration: 2 - 4 mins.
Put on soothing music and do some deep breathing. Inhale deeply through your nose and hold for a few seconds. Exhale loudly through your mouth. Repeat. Duration: 2 mins.
These 4 steps are just kindling to help get you started right away in only 10 minutes, without requiring equipment or leaving your house. The next day, increase your activity level to 20 minutes. Bump it up to 30 minutes the following day, but try new steps, like walking around your neighborhood, giving yourself a facial, eating / drinking healthy 2 x per day, trying meditation. These activities don't have to happen back-to-back once you have a good rhythm going. After a few days, you'll begin to feel the positive effects and want more structure and impact for your time commitment.
That's where we come in. We can help you turn your daily, rushed routines into intentional, thoughtful rituals of care that fit your lifestyle and maximize your efforts. Our Mindfulness-Based Self-Care™ is not an indulgence, it is a powerful practice anybody can implement to help with stress management, disease prevention, mental wellbeing and generally, to live a happy, balanced life. Learn more about our Mindfulness-Based Self-Care™ here.
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