How To Turn Your “Self Care Ideas” Into Habits That Actually Stick

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Google “mom self care ideas” and the list is literally endless.  The list of lists is endless.

Pretty overwhelming!  But, we’re talking about self care, so overwhelm is obviously the opposite of what you want right now.

So let’s get calm – here are the absolute best tips to turn “Yeah I should try self care” into full-on mommy self care healthy habits:

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Know What Self Care Means To You

It’s easy for people to say “meditate, take a bath, self-care.”   But in reality self-care is deeply personal.

Self-care is taking time to do the things that uplift YOU and make you feel positive.  That can be anything YOU need, be it putting on a face mask, sunlight touching your skin, a certain smell or taking a power nap.

Or reading.  Reading’s important.

Make a list of things that uplift you and make you feel happy.  Those are what will give you the most value for time spent.

That’s what you need to look for when you decide on your self-care routine.

Here’s my post with Self-Care ideas for your planner if you need some inspiration.

But please, for God’s sake, do not look on Instagram.  It’s not healthy.

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Prep For Self Care The Night Before

Now you have your list.  You are awesome.

Here’s what you are going to do with it:

Think about what you can get out of the way tonight to clear that self-care path for yourself tomorrow.

The easier it is for you to do the things you love, the more likely you’ll do them:

 

  • Lay out your workout stuff along with the next day’s clothes (I actually exercise in my PJs at home.  Having to wash an entire workout outfit seems so unnecessary to me.  Now THAT’S easy).
  • Before putting your phone away for the night, check your next day’s schedule.  I bet you can set a few 5-minute break alarms throughout the day to stretch your legs.
  • If eating healthy is your self-care, make one or 2 snacks before bed.  Cut some carrots & cucumbers, and add a little hummus or nut butter to put in the fridge.  This way it’s ready for when you get hungry the next day & start looking for snacks.

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What’s the “Best Time” to Fit In Your Self-Care Routine?

Remember, there is never a “best time” for anything, ever.

Self-care falls into my “important & less urgent” category of things to do.  That means I know I need to do them, just not right now this second.  

That usually leads me to put my self care ideas off until…well, never.

So, in order for me to actually DO it, I have to set it in stone, on my planner.  I have to actually schedule an appointment with myself, to get my self care in during the day.

 

What’s a good time of day, you ask? Well….

Don’t set yourself up to fail, it’s best to be realistic right off the bat.  When are the WORST times for everyone else?

You guys have heard me say this a lot – mom schedules inevitably revolve around the rest of the family.  That’s going to include mom self-care.  And mom bathroom breaks.

Yes, you are important and you deserve time to better yourself in these ways.  You are also a member of your family and they deserve your respect as you deserve theirs.

Don’t pencil in a bath right after the kids get off the bus or right when your S.O. is done working, and don’t expect them (at least the other grown-ups) to do that to you.

What they WILL do is give you your space and time when you:

  1. let them know it is important to you; and
  2. give them the opportunity to tell or show you when would be an okay time for them.

 

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Get Creative!

In my house, daddy watches some TV with the kids before bed & mommy reads the books after.

That gives me about 15 minutes of no interruptions! FROM ANYONE!

Plenty of time for one of those Fresh or TonyMoly 5-10 minute masks, or even a little ten-minute stretchy yoga session.

If you already have a routine in your day that can be supervised by someone else, snatch up that time for yourself!

 

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If You Can’t Find The Time for Self Care, Make The Time.

When you are starting out, you will be consumed with heavy, heavy guilt.  Guilt that has stopped you from having/doing/being before, and is going to try to stop you now.

If this is you, I feel you, it was me.  My best piece of advice is to either wake up earlier or stay up later than the rest of your house.

Not both dude.  You need to sleep, too.

That helped me tremendously in the beginning.  Grab an hour alone and do one thing off your list – quietly.

For example, I can’t exercise with my s.o. in the house.  It’s embarrassing if I’m being honest, and I end my workouts way earlier than I would have wanted.  I either plan for when he’s out or I wake up earlier than everyone else.

P.S.: If you like working out at home or want to start, here’s my post with 6 at-home workouts.

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Enlist Help

Apps like Headspace, Moment or myfitnesspal can take the “analysis paralysis” out of taking that leap into self-care, especially if you want to just do SOMETHING to get started.

If you feel like you will continue to put things off, then phone a friend or relative to try your self care ideas with you.  Accountability is a powerful thing.  Let them take a walk with you, or follow a free exercise video together.

You’re helping that person out too by supporting their healthy habits, so, you rock.

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Use a Habit Tracker

Have you ever heard of, “Don’t Break the Chain?”  It’s one of my favorite ways to keep track of habits I am really dedicated to keeping in my life.

Basically you use a paper or calendar to mark off the day you did your habit, and each day you do it makes the chain longer.  The idea is to not “break the chain” by skipping a day.

Another one is “Never miss twice,” when you try not to miss doing your habit two days in a row.  So when you miss a day, it’s not a big deal and you jump right back in tomorrow.

I have this new set of 2021 Habit Tracker printables in my Etsy shop that are great for keeping track of this, here is what they look like:

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JUST DO IT!

Healthy habits & self-care obviously help you.  They also help the people around you.

The less grouchy you are, the happier your kids & S.O. are.  They love you, after all.

 

What mom self-care ideas have you tried?  Which ones do you absolutely LOVE or HATE?  What’s holding you back from getting started?  Let me know in the comments!

XO,

-Mina

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If you liked this post, make sure to leave a comment & Pin it!!!

Checkout my other Blog Posts & be sure to follow me on Pinterest, I have TONS more great content!!

Here are some more posts that might be helpful:

How to Reduce your WAHM Stress Level in ONE Day

How I Meal Prep Lunch, Snacks & Dinner Working From Home + 3 Days of Recipes!

6 Workouts You Can Do At Home + Tips for Overcoming Excuses

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Mina White
Mina White
Articles: 89

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