Happy New Year! 2025 is here and we can’t wait to see what this new year has in store for everyone. No matter what your plans are for this year, don’t forget to treat yourself to some much-needed self-care. We all need to take some time to take care of ourselves. While it’s important to have ambitions and pursue our dreams, it’s also important to relax and re-center ourselves whenever we can. If you’re looking to make some changes this year, consider adding these four self-care habits to your daily routine.
Sleep More, Sleep Better
Do you get enough sleep? The average adult should be getting 7-9 hours of sleep a night. If you're not getting the right amount of sleep on a consistent basis, that can lead to sleep deprivation. When you're sleep deprived, you'll feel fatigued, experience increased depression and anxiety symptoms, your pain sensitivity will sharpen, and your body's immune system will have a harder time fighting off infections. Sleep deprivation can also lead to higher blood pressure, high cholesterol, and increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
If you’re having trouble sleeping, you may want to reduce your exposure to electronics before going to bed. The blue light emitted by cell phones, laptops, and other consumer electronics have been found to disrupt our body’s circadian rhythm, making it harder to fall asleep. You also want to make sure that you’re sleeping comfortably with your back and neck properly aligned on the mattress. Poor posture will impact your quality of sleep and can lead to other health issues down the line.
Be Mindful
A little mindfulness goes a long way. Our mind is like a constantly spinning hamster wheel. Quieting that anxious mind for a little bit is one of the best things you can do to cultivate self-care. The trick is to achieve a meditative state. Meditation is simple to learn but can take a lifetime to master. All it really entails is taking a static position (sitting, kneeling, or lying down) and committing to thinking about nothing for a short period of time. Thinking about nothing can be incredibly difficult. Your brain will go out of its way to think of things for you to worry about while you try to keep that hamster wheel from spinning. The trick to meditation is that when a thought emerges, don’t linger on it; let it float away without dwelling on it. Some schools of meditation recommend fixating on a physical object while you meditate like a simple picture on the wall or a flickering candle flame; others advise focusing on your breath and counting each one as it passes through your lungs.
The benefits of meditation include a reduction in stress and blood pressure, lengthens attention span, improves quality of sleep, and in some cases could even help treat chronic pain. There are other types of mindful activities that can also confer some (but not necessarily all) of these benefits: drawing, walking meditation, writing a gratitude journal, practicing "slow eating," gardening, yoga, breathing exercises, and even doing puzzles.
Unplug
We live in a digital age. Both our professional and personal lives often revolve around being online, so it can be very hard to unplug and step away from your email, social media, and apps. Studies have found that doing a “digital detox” where you dramatically reduce your screen time can reduce anxiety, alleviate stress, enhance quality of sleep, and improve your mood.
Unplugging can be as simple as setting a rule to yourself that you won’t check your work email or use work-related apps once you’re off the clock. This is why it’s very important to set firm work/life balance boundaries and stick to them. The key is to do something that takes you off the internet and away from all those digital distractions that can be stressors. Carve out time in your day to do off-line activities: exercise, read a book, play board games, take a walk in nature, garden, cook, or practice a craft or artform of some kind. Whenever possible, put your phone away and be present when you’re with friends and family. Don’t scroll on your phone at the dinner table or when you’re about to fall asleep in bed.
Say No to Clutter
How much of your life have you spent looking for things you’ve misplaced? Imagine all the time you could save if you’ve always kept your car keys in the same place. One way to give a gift to your future self is to keep your home free of clutter. Organize your living space and keep important items you use every day in the same place so you never have to hunt for them. Decluttering can be tedious and time-consuming, especially if you haven’t done it in a long time, but the payoff is worth it. Research has found that decluttering can be a stress reliever, it improves your self-esteem, increases your productivity, and boosts your energy levels.
You don’t have to completely clean out your home in one day. You can do it piece by piece; start with a single drawer or cabinet and work your way out from there. Ask yourself if you really need to hold onto each item in there. What still holds practical or sentimental value to you, and what is there that can be donated or tossed out? Decluttering can be a big project at first, but once you’ve finished maintaining that cleanliness will be much easier.
Article by Austin Brietta
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