As someone that struggles to relax and struggles a lot with stress levels affecting myself, my health and my sleep, I thought it was the perfect time to start taking a little bit of me time. The past couple of months have been particularly stressful for me so I find it even more important now to have a little bit of relaxation time every day. I’ve read a lot about mindfulness and meditation in the past few months too and I think this has really helped me realise the importance of this time which myself, and many others, shun for one reason or another.
Below are some of the ideas and things I use or plan to take up in order to create some relaxation time for me throughout the week. From the simple to more difficult, these are the things I will use to take myself out of the world and its stresses and really focus fully on myself.
1. Read
I love reading, I always have. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t read at night before bed. I love losing myself in a good book, it is one of my favourite things to do. Reading is something that never necessarily feels like relaxation time because it is something I do every day anyway but the good thing is that I don’t have to go out of my way to schedule this in.
Though just sitting and reading for 5 minutes may not necessarily sound relaxing, it is. Blocking out the world around you and heading into a new world is always one of my favourite things to do, exactly why fantasy novels are some of my favourites. I’m currently making my way through the Game of Thrones series and that is giving me some serious relaxation time right there with the length of those books.
This one is the easiest and probably my absolute favourite way to spend some time to myself.
2. Pamper-Time
At the moment, I very rarely get time to myself but when I do, usually on a Friday or Saturday evening I participate in a little bit of pamper time. From face masks to manicures and pedicures just spending a little bit of time on myself and keeping my skin happy is a lovely little luxury that I wish I could indulge in a bit more.
My face mask of choice is always a Lush one as their natural ingredients always suit my skin bringing out the radiance and not annoying the sensitivity of my skin. I think all women deserve a little bit of pamper time in the week to really do something for themselves be it a long bath, that charcoal face mask or giving yourself a lovely colourful or sleek manicure, it is completely necessary for relaxation and happiness in my opinion.
3. Take Up a new Hobby
When I was a child and a teenager, I had no end of hobbies but as soon as I left university and went into adult life any hobbies I had went out of the window. I just don’t have time for hobbies anymore and quite honestly I find that really sad. So now I’ve decided that it is important for me to take up a new hobby or two and pour any spare time and all my creativity into it.
It could be absolutely anything but I do think hobbies are important for taking some time out for yourself and using up any creativity that is usually stifled by the daily grind. I’ve currently been scrapbooking as a hobby which is something I’m really enjoying as it is relaxing but I also get to finally organise all my photos. I plan on taking up some new hobbies over the next few months but what I decide to take up right now I do not know.
4. Meditate/Yoga
Yoga is something I do regularly anyway, I try to do it at least once a week as a way of relaxing but also giving my muscles the opportunity to recover after a week of cardio, weights and circuit training. Yoga helps stretch them out and relax them fully whilst also giving me some time to disconnect through exercise that isn’t as demanding as the other exercise I do throughout the week.
Meditation is something I find hugely important for relaxation but it is something I’m really bad at. I’m so bad at just sitting still in silence with only my thoughts to occupy me. I’ve tried meditation so many times in the past and failed within a couple of minutes. I’m going to make a huge effort over the next few months though to really give meditation a try and not just give up at the first hurdle. I think after such a stressful few months just having 5-10 a day to sit and re-evaluate would be hugely beneficial for me, however hard I find it to do in the first place.
5. Disconnect and Get Outside
This is one of my favourite things to do at the moment and it completely works at relaxing me. Disconnecting is something I always do when I am on holiday. I don’t really check my phone at all unless absolutely necessary and it is the perfect antidote to my day-to-day life where I spend hours on social media, texting etc. But recently I’ve started ignoring my phone more and more and just going out and spending time with people or on my own without a phone being a permenant attachment.
The first thing I did to help this was turn off all notifications on my phone except for texts and phonecalls and it has helped so much with me not checking my phone every two seconds. Whenever I’m out with friends or on my own, I’ve been leaving my phone in my bag a lot more, really enjoying the moment especially with my friends focussing on them and the conversation rather than Instagram notifications.
Another good thing I have found is not using technology, doing work or being on my phone after 9pm, as the lack of screen light for a good hour or more before bed really helps me to fall asleep much more quickly than I’ve ever experienced before. Somrthing that is great for my sleep, my relaxation levels and my stress levels too.
So there we have it my five tips to relax, I hope you find these helpful if you are looking for some tips on relaxation. Do you find it easy to relax? What do you do when you take some time out for yourself?
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