As I have grown older, I have come to understand that self-care is an essential piece of an individual’s overall health and wellness. If you are not regularly taking care of yourself, chances are that you aren’t doing well at taking care of anyone else at the magnitude that you could be. So… what is self-care? Well, self-care could be different things for different people! It’s just one of those things that you have to figure out for yourself and you have to be honest about those areas that you knowingly drop the ball in yet kick the ball to the side because you don’t have time to address it in the moment.

For me, self-care is not confined to a single area. Instead, I have a few things I like to do on these days that fill me up and bring great joy to my heart. Of course, I have a list of things to choose from but, I’ll share a few with you in hopes that it will help you to truly figure out what it is that you need for YOU!

First, I chose Saturday as my main day for self-care. Obviously, this isn’t the only day that I show myself some love but, I do try and plan a day where I am intentional about ensuring that it gets accomplished! Also, Saturday’s for me are usually a free-ish kind of day in which I have complete control over what I must do vs. what I want to do. I recommend that you pick a day of the week that works best for you and work it for a few weeks until it becomes a natural habit.

Self-care Saturday’s for me in this season have consisted of a few small things that I have found to be relaxing and/or amusing. First, I attempt to sleep in as long as my tots will let me. This morning, it was until 8:17 am which sounds crazy but, en la casa de Ojeda, that’s a win for sure. Even if it was just an additional 15 minutes past the normal rise and grind, I would still count that as a small win and keep it moving. After all, it’s 15 extra minutes of rest that I didn’t have before!

Once I’m up, I attempt to spend some time praying and or getting into a mini worship sesh. This usually only happens in the bathroom as I prepare for my shower or while brushing my teeth but, it’s generally the only time I have where I can lock my kids out and ignore their banging on the door or screaming for me to “cut on songs” on YouTube. This is my time to express my thankfulness for the breath in my lungs as well as a time where I can listen for the Lord’s voice and get some direction for my life. (and the good Lord knows I need direction!)

Next, I decide whether I want to experiment with make-up, peel off face masks, my hair care routine or a DIY mani-pedi. To make doing nails more fun for myself, I invested in a UV nail lamp and some cute nude colored and sparkly gel polishes. I love this option because I not only save a nice chunk of change doing it myself but also, I come out with professional looking nails that I can have the satisfaction of saying “I did these myself”! (Bragging rights aren’t important in this instance). It took me a lifetime to figure out how-to put lashes on but now that I am proficient, I usually play around with different ones while simultaneously applying the cucumber mask to my face. I have tons of makeup so; I could get lost for hours messing around in all this stuff. On self-care day, I can do whatever I want and that’s the point lol!

Self-care Saturdays also call for a time for journaling and/or listening to some podcast & audio books. My current audio books consist of “Becoming” by Michelle Obama, “Girl, Stop Apologizing” by Rachel Hollis and of course the bible. Some of my podcast faves include “Woman Evolve” with Sarah Jakes, The Janet Murray Show, HR Break Room and Craig Groeschels’s leadership podcast. Journaling is more a mixture of brainstorming, complaining, blogging, reflecting and evaluating my goals. I generally do this in my SUV so that I can lean my seat back, put my feet up on the dashboard, crack the windows and enjoy the silence-UNINTERRUPTED! There’s usually a latte involved as well. It. Is. Glorious; You. Should. try it!

I also get a kick out of taking time to just go to random stores. There’s not always a plan to shop involved… Instead, there might be a scanning mission to boost my shop kick points or a time to explore a thrift store to find some frugal oblong décor for my home.

Lastly, it’s not a true self-care Saturday if there isn’t some sort of fitness effort incorporated into the mix. As much as I love to laze around, I occasionally like to take this day to challenge myself to exceed my daily fitness goal. I generally like to do this by drastically increasing my steps or dropping by the local PF gym to utilize their cardio equipment.

I could go on and on but like I said, these are just a few things that I like to do and are merely a few tidbits that I wanted to use as examples. You can do whatever your heart desires but, the point is to come out of it feeling peaceful and whole. Take time out to invest in yourself and do the things that you love because these are the things that will improve your mental health and overall well-being.

Written by: Teah Ojeda