11 Ways To Take Better Care Of Yourself After A Stressful Day
Self-Care is not Selfish, and I touched upon this in my earlier blog (5 Essential Life lessons you need to know). Self-care means giving yourself permission to pause & rejuvenate your physical self and your spirit before your next chore or task.
Having a self-care checklist for different times of the day ensures that I do not bog down by what comes my way. I am ready, and all powered up to face the next few hours of the day with the same enthusiasm as I was at the beginning of the day. As a working mom, for me, this evening self-care routine worked the best. It helps me glide smoothly back into my role of a mother, a homemaker & a family person. So here they go!
11 Self-Care Tips To Help You Relax In The Evening
During the workweek, it’s almost impossible to take out time to pamper yourself with a luxurious Spa massage or a prolonged shower with aroma candles & music. Any typical workday evening is like a circus only difference being here you are the juggler. You are trying to balance your time between the finishing of your last set of urgent emails or tasks and listening to your over-enthusiastic kids.
In my case, I have 2 teen daughters who want to share all the good and bad that happened to them during the day. And there may be other participants maybe your house elderly parents, caregivers or your spouse who also have their share of woes to discuss. At that time, you just want to stop the world and say ‘Wait… let me gear up for this”. Its time for Self-help and that’s where these tips will come handy.
Grab A Cup Of Tea
For me, Tea does the trick, but whatever works for you – coffee, Green Tea, Fresh juice. Anything that gives you time to just sit down, relax and close the world around you while you sip the drink that invigorates you. In every sip, feel all the stress going down slowly as you start your second shift as a homemaker. By the way, this is also very useful if you work from home. Its the end of the workday for you and your mind needs to relax though you are at home.
Cleanse Your Face
Have a face cleansing & moisturising routine. Cleansing helps remove excess oil, makeup, sweat, dirt & dead skin cells from your skin. This helps your skin to breathe again. You will be surprised how fresh and energised you feel once you have followed the entire ritual of cleaning & moisturising your face.
Relaxing Shower
For me, a relaxing shower after the cleansing ritual and before I indulge in my chores worked the best. But you can decide what time & schedule works best for you and everyone in the house. Some people prefer having a shower just before bedtime as it is supposed to induce sleep. (Reference https://www.treehugger.com/benefits-night-shower-including-improved-sleep-4858482).
For me, shower time is my time where I am away from all the distractions tech and non-tech. One can generally have some music or aroma candles, but I prefer to use this time to self-introspect & flush out any thoughts disturbing me. Spending time with myself & feeling the tension in my body flow away in water is a great relaxant & the best self-service for me. But wait, there’s more coming.
Change into something comfortable
For me changing into my comfortable pyjamas adjusts my mood automatically. It is like switching off the work mode to switching on the relaxing mode. Ideally, you should have a different set of wardrobe for work & rest even if you are working from home or a homemaker. Well ladies, another reason to shop 🙂
Spend Quality Time With Love Ones
This is the best part of the evening and something that I look forward to you. Your parents, kids, spouse or pet has waited for the whole day for you to spend time with them. Give them that undivided attention. This can be in person if you are staying together or thru the various digital channels available.
I usually try time blocking with my teens as they have their own schedule & we have to fit into that. Therefore usually 30-45 mins before bedtime, is our family catch up time. During this time they have my undivided attention & I have theirs without any screens. That’s the most important rule which all of us falter time to time, but we still try. I also have a set routine of calling my mom every day at a fixed time. And it’s something that we both look forward to.
Spending Quality Time With Self
Remember, you also need time to unwind & relax. And your relaxation mantra could be anything – listening to music, cooking, reading a book, playing some sport, Netflix binging or maybe just taking a walk with your pet. I also call this Self-love i.e when you do what you love the most.
Do what brings you joy, eases your tension & rejuvenates your mind and soul. I like to read spiritual books or hear podcasts for 10-15 mins before I sleep. Again to each his own. But it’s essential to have a routine so that you look forward to it every day. But that’s not all.
Set Up For The Next Day
This routine adds on some excitement to an otherwise ordinary day & is my favourite. Set up for me means deciding what I am going to wear the next day. This can be based on what my schedule looks like. You decide your outfit based on whether you have some client-facing meetings or internal or you are going for some specific programs.
For us woman who always seems to have a dearth of clothes & shoes in our closet, this activity may require all our innovative and management skills. But it is rejuvenating nevertheless.
Plan Your Next Day
It’s a good idea probably to spend 10-15 mins on your next day schedule before you wind up for the day. This will help you get a perspective of what is in store- back to back meetings or relatively lighter day. An early morning meeting or call with colleagues in different time zone may require that you retire to bed early to have a fresh start the next day.
Similarly, a stretched workday may entail that you may need to prioritise some of your evening routine activities. This though not desirable, is better than complete elimination.
Kiss Your Loved Ones Good Night
Especially true if you have kids. My good night wishes with my teens sometimes extend to more than 30 minutes, and I have to push them out of my room sometimes. But these are beautiful moments that fill your heart with joy and happiness. I never forget to wish them a good night even if they are asleep. The feelings are the same when you are staying with your parents or spouse. To have your loved ones around you is the best blessing for a peaceful sleep.
Moisturise Your Hands & Feet Before Going To Bed
The biggest mistake most of us do is to do the entire moisturising routine with our face. We more often than not forget the other parts of our body, which also get dry. I make it a point to moisturise my hands & feet before going to bed. They are the ones that work really hard for us and bear most of the brunt. It’s fair to pamper them once in a day and night time is the best time. This is because they will get well hydrated for entire 8-9 hours while we are sleeping and you will wake up to smooth well-rested limbs.
Express Gratitude
As you are wrapping up your day and looking to start afresh day tomorrow, step back and think “What are you grateful for today”. You will be surprised by the list that flashes in front of you. A grateful heart knows that you should not take anything for granted and that we must learn to live every moment to its fullest.
Say Thank You to whatever supreme power you believe in and start the next day with a positive thought and grateful heart.
Hope you find this routine doable and helpful. But don’t forget to pamper yourself with that monthly Spa session or the salon visit. In L.R.Knost’s words “ Taking care of yourself doesn’t mean me first, it means ME TOO”.
Take Good Care of Yourself.
11 Self-Care Tips To Help You Relax In The Evening – Because you are worth it!
Article contributed by: Rippy Gauba
She is a working professional and a mom of 2 teen daughters. After having worked in the corporate world for 22 years, she is now a free-lance consultant specialising in project management. She very passionate about spending quality time with her family, pet CoCo, painting and blogging. She writes on Mindset, Motivation & Management. These are everyday, practical tips picked up from personal & professional life. These learnings have impacted her life as an individual, as a parent and as a working professional. Read more interesting Posts on My-Ripple-Effect
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