Self Care is possible for free…
In my 20’s I usually lived off of a $50 budget for the week for gas and food… for me and my daughter.
Being a poor, single parent and college student sucked. I had to get super creative with everything. We moved every time rent was raised, which, in Austin, was every single year. And I had to rely on a lot of folks to help get me to graduation.
I was actually married the year I graduated, having tried to make it work with my ex husband. But for a lot of reasons, that brief marriage failed.
I digress…
The point is I had to figure out how to create a life and how to give myself self care. At the time, I remember outsourcing one thing: my nails. I felt so taken care of and it was worth the money.
Fast-forward to today and I still employ practices I developed back then, and have added more. Here are my favorite hacks:
Do nothing — whatever your version of nothing is. Taking a sabbath doesn’t have to be a religious mandate. You can take a day off because we were not meant to work every day relentlessly. Fear can tell us that we can’t take a day, but I promise you can and you’ll be better for it.
Take a brain break. This is new for me. It takes planning because you have to pre-decide things. You could always say f*** it, I’ll think tomorrow, too.
Connect with nature indoors or outdoors. This could be repotting a plant, going to a plant nursery, taking a walk, or sitting under a tree. You don’t have to pay to go to the local botanical gardens. Any engagement with nature can be a meditation. Reconnect with this ancestral version of yourself.
Enjoy the ritual of a good cleanse. At some point, I started rushing this. Taking it back (we used to do this as toddlers!!!) is refreshing. Lather up with oils after to feel incredibly luxurious (and you won’t be ashy).
Savasana. It can be 5 minutes, it can be more. Resting with awareness trains us to be with and in rest. It allows us to observe rest. There is a pause between working and sleeping. That pause is rest.
These are mine. What are your accessible self care practices? Leave a comment below.