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Practicing self-care has been one of the most essential parts of my mental health journey, especially as a busy college student. It’s often so difficult to find time to unwind and relax in a world that is so entirely consumed with deadlines, due dates, and a laundry list of things to get done every single day. These are some of the best self-care practices that I’ve discovered so far, and they’re all busy-college-girl-friendly, of course!
- Journaling
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I know what you’re thinking: “Yet another self-care list telling me to write about my feelings,” but this is exactly where my habitual self-care journey started! Setting aside 5-10 minutes every morning while eating breakfast to just write everything that flows through your head will help you to feel grounded as you start your day. Setting intentions for the day ahead of you and expressing gratitude for everything you will encounter throughout the day is a great way to begin this process! I recommend the Self-Reflection Kit from We’re Not Really Strangers, too. With this journal, you’ll respond to a short, highly-introspective prompt, and WNRS encourages you to date each entry, so you can look back on your progress in the future.
- Learning to cook and bake
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This one may sound a bit funny, but seriously, cooking and baking have become therapeutic for me! Living off-campus, I typically cook dinner every night…meaning that I’ve been forced to become a semi-skilled chef. Frustration was usually the result of my time spent in the kitchen, but now, the frustration is replaced with absolutely delicious meals (that are always photographed and sent to my mom). I put on my favorite playlist, open a can of lime La Croix, and start constructing my dinner. Baking a batch of chocolate chip cookies has become a bi-weekly Sunday ritual of mine, too! TikTok is a great place to find new and easy recipes to make.
- Developing a skincare routine–and sticking to it!
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My skincare routine has been a wild ride, but my advice is to find a few products you love and stick with them. Consistency is key in terms of skincare, regardless of skin concerns or skin types! Some of my all-time favorites are First Aid Beauty’s Ultra Repair Cream, First Aid Beauty’s face cleanser, and The Ordinary’s niacinamide + zinc serum as well as their hyaluronic acid. I try to keep it as simple as possible while still giving my skin all the TLC it needs during the winter months.
- Listening to Emma Chamberlain’s Anything Goes Podcast
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If you’re unfamiliar with Emma Chamberlain, you need to listen to her podcast ASAP. She got her start on YouTube as a lifestyle vlogger and quickly became one of the top influencers for teenage girls of Gen Z. Over the years, Emma has produced content about mental health (and her struggles with it), and her transparency is why her audience views her as more of a friend than an untouchable celebrity–she’s human, just like us!
Anything Goes is a podcast on all music-streaming platforms on which Emma discusses, well, everything. From the products that she cannot live without, to the media’s “idealized” view of women, the episodes are packed with life lessons and new perspectives. I adore listening to Anything Goes on long car rides or when I clean because it honestly feels like a FaceTime call with your childhood best friend. Her insight and advice feel like that of an older sister, and, in true Emma Chamberlain style, her episodes are always riddled with humor fueled by her iced coffee addiction. Check out the AG Twitter to stay up to date!
- Meditating daily
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The beauty of meditation is that you’re in control of how much time you wish to devote to it every single day. It can be a quick 5-minute gratitude meditation before heading off to bed, or it can be a 20-minute meditation when you need a break from studying! I’ve found that meditating whenever I’m stressed during the day helps refocus my mind and allows me to feel far more productive afterward. I’ve been loving the 5-minute meditations from the Peloton app to start my days.
- Reading 20 pages before bed
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I have to admit, I have always been a bit of a book nerd. But, as full-time students, we can often forget that reading actually exists outside the classroom (and that we don’t have to Sparknote books we choose to read for fun). Winding down before bed is so important, and taking some time away from the screens and technology is the key to a great night’s sleep. Do some scrolling on Book-Tok to find a read that interests you! Some of my all-time favs are The Tipping Point by Malcom Gladwell, The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, and The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (you can never go wrong with some classics).
- Drinking tea
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Alright, I honestly never thought I’d become a tea fanatic at 19, but making a cup of Nighty Night tea from Traditional Medicinals has become the best part of my day. It’s an organic tea that promotes restful sleep without that next-morning grogginess from melatonin. I love mine with fresh lemon, and I’ll always sip while I read my nightly 20 pages!
- Starting “to-do days”
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“To-Do Days,” as I’ve dubbed them, are days when you do certain activities or chores, but on a routine. For example, my Tuesday To-Dos are as follows: wash all bedding, FaceTime best friend from home, use under-eye patches, do the NYT crossword puzzle, clean white sneakers, etc. These to-dos are entirely unrelated to reading textbooks, studying for tests, replying to emails, and taking class notes–they’re all about you! Sometimes, I’ll pick and choose my to-dos, but having long lists of daily tasks I love and actually want to do keeps my days exciting because there’s always something to look forward to! I always get inspo from Eli Rallo (aka @thejarr) on TikTok since she began her series on “rules” to follow.
- Take an “everything shower”
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Yep, the everything shower is single-handedly the BEST self care practice when you desperately need a pick me up. The reason it’s called the everything shower? You do everything: wash the hair, do a deep conditioning mask, exfoliate, shave the legs, let out a good cry, perhaps. EVERYTHING. You’ll step out of the shower feeling like a completely brand-new human, I promise. An everything shower must be conducted at least once a week, and I always follow up with my favorite body moisturizer and my entire skincare routine. Hot girl mode: activated. Bonus: put on a performance with this playlist from Eli Rallo (@thejarr on TikTok).
- WEIGHTED. BLANKET. NAPS.
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I cannot hype up a weighted blanket enough. And, if you really want to up your status as Nap Queen, you’ve got to have one. Weighted blankets are great for de-stressing and unwinding, and they’ve been said to help reduce feelings of anxiety, too! As soon as my weekday afternoon slump starts kicking in, I know that I desperately need a quick power nap with my weighted blanket. Once I wake up, I have to admit that it’s hard to crawl out of bed and get back to my day, but hey, at least that means the blanket is doing its job, right?
