5 Simple Ways to Treat Yourself This Holiday Season

It’s not hard to think up great ways to treat yourself. We’d all love a spa day topped off with a meal prepared and served by someone else. Maybe get a sitter for the night, so the little angels are asleep when we get home. Or just a morning where the cat doesn't wake you up by running across your pillow.

But for every article I read about self care, I find myself rolling my eyes and thinking, "Who can afford that?"  Yes, it would be great to have an afternoon to myself, a pizza from In Riva with a Ben & Jerry’s chaser. But that's not particularly healthy.

I’m all about realistic self care. That is, activities that aren't expensive, don't involve food, and will make you feel good about how you spent that time. Here's a list of my favorites… also, bonus! Most of these you can do with kids.

Meditate, the easy way

If you're the kind of person who can't sleep during the day, napping can be more like torture. But guided meditation is a whole other story. It gives your mind something (easy) to do so the rest of you can relax a bit. There are plenty of free guided meditations online. Check out the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center website and the free version of the Headspace app, which has plenty of options to get you started. 

Read a book

When was the last time you read for pleasure? Even if you can't get to your library, there are plenty of free ebooks on Amazon, and your local library may have a free online borrowing program. Or reread some of your favorite books from childhood if you have them hanging around.

Learn something

If you choose the topic right, learning is great self-care. Pick a topic for FUN. Don't feel like you need to learn something pertinent to your work or a current hobby.  Check out Coursera, MIT or Harvard to start. There are PLENTY of other sources for free online classes, too! When in doubt, head over to YouTube and go crazy.

Draw

Bust out a piece for paper and draw something. Even if you don't have fancy pencils or crayons or markers, you can play with shading and pressure and make something cool. There are plenty of free coloring pages you can download and print out. If drawing for drawing’s sake feels too childlike and frivolous, look into Bullet Journaling! This practice combines creativity and art with organization and time management (it’s cooler than it sounds).

And when all else fails… Nap

Put your jams on and take a nap. In your bed. Not all crammed up on the couch with the TV on. Close the shades in your bedroom and hunker down for a proper sleep.

There. You don’t have to spend money or fill your belly to feel great and treat yourself well!