Hello friends! Super excited about this post (& a little freebie download for you at the bottom!) Over the past year, self-care has become more of a priority for me. It’s also an insanely “hot topic” as work-life balance is getting discussed more in general. It sounds so simple–take care of yourself = you feel better, but often time it falls to the wayside. You actually have to make time for self-care.

At the end of January, I was in a little bit of a funk. Probably because I haaaaate winter & January felt like 3 years of grey-dreariness (seriously, January went on forever, idk how that’s possible). So, to get out of my funk & in honor of February, the month of love~, I decided to do a 30-Day Self-Care Challenge. 

I wrote a post about self-care here, just about general ways to get started, but this post is how to do a 30-Day Self-Care challenge, including tips, planning your self-care ahead of time & a calendar of self-care ideas/suggestions. Of course, self-care is all about what makes you feel good, so take this post as a guide and make your self-care challenge your own!

Getting Started

While it’s nice to think you’ll just magically do a self-care activity every day for 30 days, it’s not super realistic without a plan. Here’s how to get started:

• Pick a start date. Sounds obvious, but start on the first of the month, your birthday, a random Wednesday, whatever, but pick it and WRITE IT DOWN. Put it in your planner or Google calendar. Just like you schedule doctor appointments, work obligations, social events, etc., schedule your self-care.
• Figure out your daily self-care activities. Feel free to use this handy self-care calendar I created (download here!!) or make a list of all the simple joys/things that make you feel good so you can complete one each day. They don’t have to be time-consuming or expensive–it can be as simple as grabbing your favorite coffee or making a gratitude list.
• Tell people! If you tell people you’re doing it 1. it may inspire them to do it too & everything is more fun with friends and 2. it’s an accountability thing. The more people you tell, the more likely you’ll be able to complete all 30 days.

During your 30 Days

Alright, you’ve got it all planned out, now here are some tips for your month of self-care.

• Be flexible. This should be a fun activity! If you can’t make it to the liquor store to pick up your favorite bottle of wine today, do it tomorrow & swap it with tomorrow’s activity. Life happens. Just because you planned on doing xyz doesn’t mean it’s set in stone. The point is to do a little something each day, but if your 30 days don’t go exactly according to your plan/calendar, it’s all good.
• Don’t feel guilty. If you miss a day, you miss a day. It’s okay. Again, life gets crazy. As long as you have the intention of completing an activity every day, you’re practicing self-care. You can always tack on an extra day at the end of your 30 days to do another activity.
• Reflect. Take time to reflect on how you feel throughout your 30 days. Jot down some notes or take a moment to think about it. Are you having fun? Is it making you happy? Do you feel less stressed? By doing a little check-in with yourself, you can make any adjustments to make your 30 days the most enjoyable they can be.

My Key Takeaways

Just some final thoughts as I wrap up my 30 days:

• Simple joys = big difference. Personally, I structured my self-care challenge around my simple joys (you totally can too or pick a focus like fitness, nutrition or mental wellness). It was amazing that simply treating myself to breakfast or buying flowers for myself made me so happy & totally brightened my mood that day. Never underestimate the power of a simple joy.
• It gives you something to look forward to. I wrote down my self-care activities in my planner in hot pink ink (so happy), and I actually was so excited to see what the day’s activity was when I woke up in the morning. No matter what other stressful things I had that day, it gave me something happy/fun to look forward to.
• You. Are. Worth. It. Sometimes “treating yourself” for “no reason” makes us feel guilty/undeserving. WRONG. You are worth taking care of. You are worth making yourself happy. You are worth taking care of yourself. Always, always, always.

I will leave you with this handy self-care challenge calendar. Feel free to download it here. Use it as a guide,or simply inspiration & create your own UNIQUE challenge.

 

(download it here & print!)

What are some of your favorite self-care activities? Leave me a comment below! &. 

P.S. In case ya missed it…

• Type A? Can’t go with the flow? I made ya a guide (yes, a guide on how to let go. You’re welcome).
• All my favorite things from February are right here.
• Step up your brunch game with this bougie buffet (soooo worth it & delicious).