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While you can practice self-care at any time during the day, it is easy to add to your nighttime routine. This is when you tend to have a little more downtime, as you are not trying to rush to get your kids out the door or stay productive with work in the morning.
Here are a few tips for adding some self-care activities to your nighttime routine.
Analyze Your Current Nighttime Routine
Before you can think about what type of self-care to do at night and how long you are able to dedicate to it, you need to know what your current schedule looks like. If you have a nighttime routine, consider what it is, what you tend to do, and when you start. There is likely a short window of time where adding self-care is prudent for you.
You don’t want it to inconvenience you, otherwise, you won’t gain the emotional benefits from self-care as it will feel too forced.
Give Yourself an Hour of Alone Time
About an hour is a good amount of time for your nighttime self-care routine, preferably when it is quiet and you can spend a little time alone. If you have less than that, it’s perfectly fine, but make sure you are making yourself a priority.
Try to fit in some alone time, even if it’s just when you take your bath or shower at night, go through your skincare routine, or have a few minutes to write in your journal. This can be so much more therapeutic than you might think.
Choose Relaxing Activities You Enjoy
Remember that self-care should be enjoyable and something you look forward to, not something you dread doing. This is not the same thing as flossing your teeth at night or doing chores during the day. Don’t consider every little thing part of your self-care routine, but instead those activities that are not expected of you. Instead, choose additional relaxing activities that are intentional and will improve your mood and your life.
It can help to start with a list of everything you enjoy doing. Anything you can think of can go on the list. Think about what makes you feel happy or joyful, what relaxes you, what you do on a sick or rainy day, and what you like to do alone or with friends or family. This list can often help you pinpoint what would be best to add to your nighttime self-care routine.
