For sensitive souls, or those constantly exposed to stress, the demands of modern life can be both emotionally exhausting and draining. These 12 self-care remedies are the perfect way to help restore balance to our hectic, information-filled lives!
If your daily or weekly life is putting pressure on you, if you are constantly making decisions big or small, if negative information is simply overwhelming, or if you’re constantly giving your energy away to others and are basically running on fumes, then this is the self-care post for you!
Below I offer some alternative therapy ideas you can try that will help you pamper and nurture your heart and soul to help you detox emotionally from those pesky stressors and pressures.
As much as possible, try giving yourself an hour, a half-day, a day, or even a weekend for these practices. Why? Because you’re not stingy with others and shouldn’t be with yourself. Because you deserve it and you actually need it!
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A LUXURIOUS BATH
This is one of my personal favorites and oddly, I don’t do it often enough! Make this an “event” by adding: scented oils, Epsom salt, bath bombs, flower petals, candles, sip your favorite tea, and listen to heavenly music to enhance your experience. Turn out the lights and simply float away to self-care heaven!
Pair this with beauty-pampering to up the ante: face masks, hair masks, sugar scrubs, etc.
SOUND HEALING SESSIONS
Speaking of baths, have you ever tried a sound bath? Sound healing is one of my absolute favorite healing activities ever.
The practitioner can use professional-grade metal or crystal bowls, gongs, tuning forks or other items to target part of the body and enable healing and release.
The vibrations seep deeply into the body and mind. It shakes loose whatever ails me, helps me drift away, and leaves me feeling refreshed like I’ve had a blissful, week-long sleep.
My favorites are Tibetan sound bowl or gong sessions. Both send me to the outer relaxation stratosphere and a 1-hour sesh makes me feel like I’ve been on vacation. What can I say? You gotta try this!!
Hopefully, you can find a sound-healing practitioner in your area, if not, try searching for “sound healing” on YouTube. It’s nowhere near as good as having an in-person treatment, but it’s still relaxing. I’m lucky enough to live with a sound healer; I love it that much! 🙂
SOUND BATH CONCERT
Speaking of sound baths, did you know there are sound-healing concerts?! If you can go to one of these in your area or while traveling, it’s sublime!
The practitioner will really pull out all the stops and will often combine many kinds of bowls, as well as other instruments (gongs, chimes, drums, etc.). Rather than treat your body or area, everyone in the space will be engulfed by all this luscious sound. This is one of my favorite indulgences in life!
ACUPRESSURE MAT
This one may not appeal to everyone, but I am a convert. Lying on a thousand little points, I feel a wave of heat surge (naturally from my own body!) and after a few minutes, relaxation sets-in.
I use my mat and acupressure pillow on bare skin to help relieve tension in my back and neck, as well as help me sleep. However, some people find it too painful. If that’s the case, try it on a bed or with a thin t-shirt to ease the intensity.
YOGA
What can I say? I avoided having a yoga practice forever, even though I was drawn to it. For some bizarre reason, I never thought of it as self-care. Once I started, it was game-changing.
The cool thing is that there is a yoga out there for everyone. Will yoga help you relax, you ask? Yup. I admit the first few weeks may be harder, so just honor where you’re at and go slowly. If it’s too hard, find an easier/shorter class or video. This is about going easy on yourself. This is a practice that builds over time and is totally worth it.
Wanna be lazy? Yes please! Then I highly recommend Yin Yoga. Grab a few pillows and thick blankets (no need to buy equipment), and give it a whirl (more like a lay-down!). Yin yoga deeply releases the fascia underneath muscles for maximum relaxation. It mostly involves getting into a pose on the floor and sinking into it. There are free videos on Youtube. Yoga just not for you? Try deep-stretching sessions instead.
AROMATHERAPY
Essential oils can be used as a naturopathic therapy to calm the mind, release anxiety, and even ease depression symptoms. Some trusted go-to’s, such as lavender oil and frankincense oils can help melt away anxiety.
Other options are scented-candles, diffusers, and incense. Bonus if they’re petroleum-free and scented naturally. White sage is another option for clearing ourselves and the spaces in the home. I talk about how to do this here.
SENSORY DEPRIVATION
This is one I’m dying to try. Go into a sensory deprivation tank and float away for an hour or more. Some people swear by this one. Floating weightlessly in silence and with no external stimuli, this helps the brain disconnect from the sensory world and can feel otherworldly!
DEEP BREATHING
This one is free and easy to do. Again, you can find many free guided-sessions on deep breathing. You can also increase the effects by trying various yogic breathing techniques that help balance the brain hemispheres.
If you’re stressed, it’s possible that you have been breathing shallowly for years. Start breathing deeply today for a longer life!
HOT TUB / SAUNA / HOT SPRINGS
In case you haven’t caught on yet, I love to float! These treatments are a no-brainer. My dream in life is to own a salt-water hot tub, lol. If like me, you don’t have a hot tub or sauna at home, consider joining a gym that offers these options and indulging frequently!
MASSAGE
If you can afford to get a massage, do so. This can be a wonderful, special, luxurious, and pampering self-care treat.
But make sure you’re clear and realistic about what you want. If you want to just relax, try a Swedish massage. If your body is tight and aching, consider several deep-tissue sessions; however, this kind of massage will often hurt as you release the muscles, so not as relaxing.
Be aware that a massage therapist is not a magic healer and can’t “fix you” in one session! You took weeks, months, even years to get your body where it is and it can take a lot of massages to get un-wound. Also, this is a hard job; please tip service-industry folk and get good karma in the process. 🙂
CBD OIL
Just to be clear, CBD does not come from the marijuana plant, but from hemp. If you’re lucky enough to live in a state where CBD is legal, try slathering on a dime to quarter-sized amount; bonus points if it’s scented with essential oils.
I use this daily at bedtime and the relaxation is almost immediate. Aaaaah. My 68-year old mother also loves this one.
MEDITATION
Meditation really does work. I consider this mental and spiritual self-care. I work in a cubicle in my other life (believe it or not) and I love to take 5 to 15 minutes out of my lunch a couple of times a week to listen to a sound meditation, courtesy Youtube. Any kind of meditation will do and I like mixing it up.
If you have time to do a little sesh at home, here is a simple guide for beginners.
Aaaaaaaah… Feeling relaxed yet? I hope the above suggestions help you to release that which is not serving you and to find inner peace. You’re a good person and you deserve peace today! Nurture yourself as often as you need because you are totally worth it!
What are your favorite self-care go-to’s?
Much love,
Kavi
Image at the top by Jürgen Rübig from Pixabay
