How to be awesome at self-care

Learning to look after yourself will build your self-confidence and help you give out positive vibes. It’s not always easy to get into the habit of self-care, so here are a few ideas to get you started.

This can help if:

• you're not looking after yourself at the moment

• you want to get ideas for how to practise self-care

• you want to establish more positive personal habits.

1. Take time for a vibe booster

Setting aside time to do something you really enjoy can help lift your mood. If you’ve got a busy schedule, an occasional 15-minute break will energise you. Spend that time listening to a few of your favourite songs, make a cup of tea, or watch some of the endless supply of fail videos the internet has to offer.

Or, we hear baking is a pretty delicious self-care activity. Practising mindfulness as you follow the recipe, taste-testing, the smell wafting through the house - what’s not to love?

2. Pump up the positive vibes

It’s so easy to get caught up in every little thing you’d like to change about yourself. But that’s not always the most productive use of your energy. Instead, take a break from thinking about what you’d change, and instead focus on what you love about yourself. At first, you might feel embarrassed doing this, but no one but you needs to know.

Write down some of your achievements or the personal traits you’re proud of onto post-it notes and stick them on your mirror. Make sure you read them every morning. That way, you can start every day with a smile.

If you're finding it tricky to pump yourself up, it might help to chat with someone about how you're feeling. You could talk it out with a good friend, or even book in a free, text-based chat with a peer worker using ReachOut PeerChat.

3. Log out to chill out

Look, we’re not going to tell you to delete social media and go live in a cave. Staying connected is a great way to keep in touch with friends and family, and to know what’s happening around the world. But keep in mind that social media is just a snapshot of a person’s life. And often those snapshots are heavily filtered. If you find you’re comparing yourself to insta-models, close the app and go for a walk, or call a friend and have a good chat. Then go back to point 2 and remember all the great things about you.

4. Take yourself on a date

Date with yourself = no awkward small talk. If you’re not keen on having an entire dinner by yourself, grab some ice-cream or a coffee and just enjoy your own company without the added pressure of an actual date. You could bring along a book or magazine if you think you’ll get bored.

5. Write it down

Writing things down is a great way of staying motivated and seeing your progress. Use a diary to keep track of the personal goals you’ve been setting and meeting, and update it regularly.

Be sure to include both your big and small goals. This will help you to feel good about all your achievements. If you’re not so into goals, use your diary to write about your day - you could try writing what was crappy and what you’re grateful for.