Self-care is important at any time of the day, but I’ve found that self-care is especially helpful in the evening. At the end of each day, it’s beneficial to your mental health and overall wellbeing to find ways to unwind, slow down, and prepare your body and mind for a restful sleep. Self-care is a great way to achieve all three of these things. Creating an evening self-care routine will benefit your mind and your sleep patterns, help you recharge and relax, and will give you something to look forward to at the end of every day.
I feel like I’m still trying to kick my bad habits and establish an intentional evening routine. I’m totally guilty of eating before bed, scrolling through social media right before I try to fall asleep, and basically doing anything that winds my mind up instead of calms me down. I’m really trying to get better at this, because on the evenings that I do intentionally practice self-care, I’ve experienced some pretty awesome benefits.
In order to get the most out of your evening self-care routine, you first have to figure out what self-care practices will work best for you. Everyone is unique, so your idea of a fantastic evening self-care routine will be different than mine. So instead of telling you what to include in your routine, I’m going to guide you through how to create a personalized evening self-care routine that’s the best for you.
Before you decide what you want to include in your evening self-care routine, there are a few questions you need to ask yourself.
What physical or mental habits do I tend to do in the evening that energize me?
Think about the things you do in the evening that wind you up instead of calm you down. Some physical examples could be exercise, eating, or watching TV. Some mental examples could be stressing out about your to-do list for the next day, getting lost in social media, or doing any other mentally vigorous task.
Like I said before, my habits in the evening include eating before bed and scrolling social media. I find that my anxiety also often gets amplified in the evening when I think about all the things I need to get done before bed and everything I need to do the next day. Another habit I’ve noticed is that when I’m lying in bed trying to fall asleep, I suddenly get a burst of creative or inspirational ideas, but I’m too lazy to get up and write them down, so by the time I wake up they’ve vanished. So for me, my worst habit is working myself up mentally instead of doing things to calm down and quiet my mind.
Take some time to think about any physical or mental evening habits you may have. Once you figure out the things you do that energize you instead of calm you down, you can then decide if those activities and behaviours are benefitting or hindering your evening self-care. Maybe you actually really enjoy a burst of energy before bed. If these habits aren’t negatively affecting your evening, it’s okay to keep engaging with them. But beware of the physical and mental things you do in the evening that prevent you from ever winding down and getting a restful sleep.
What physical or mental habits do I do in the evening that calm me down?
Reflect on the things you do in the evening that help calm your body and mind. Maybe you like to take warm baths, do some yoga, or stretch to calm your body. And maybe curling up with a good book, meditating, or journaling before bed calms your mind. Think about whatever you do in the evening that helps you unwind and slow down before you prepare yourself to sleep.
When I’m not caught up in my less than helpful evening habits as mentioned before, I find that doing certain things to calm my body and mind really helps me fall asleep faster and get a better sleep. There’s nothing worse than tossing and turning for hours and waking up in the morning from a restless sleep. Been there, done that, way too many times, and I’m sure you can relate, too.
In order to get the most out of every day, it’s essential to try to get the right amount of sleep for your body. Ideally that would be seven or eight hours, but some people feel totally fine with five or six. Decide how much sleep you need and aim to get that much every night. Your evening self-care routine will be a big help in making sure you get the right amount of sleep for you.
What self-care practices do I want to include in my evening routine?
So you’ve reflected on the physical and mental habits you do in the evening that energize you and calm you down. Now it’s time for the fun part: creating your evening self-care routine! Decide what you want to take away from and include in your evening self-care routine. Do less of the things that prevent you from unwinding or getting a restful sleep, and do more of the things that calm you down and help you get a good night’s sleep.
If you need some ideas, try these out!
I can’t tell you what’s best for you, but I sure can help you think of some ideas to add to your evening self-care routine. Here are some of my personal favourites.
Take a warm shower or bath.
One of my favourite things to do in the evening is take a shower. It’s a great way to wash your day off, and I love getting into bed feeling clean. The next time you shower in the evening, take your time and cleanse yourself of the day. And if you have extra time, treat yourself to a warm bath. I always feel extra relaxed after soaking in the tub.
Read a book.
Doing some reading before bed is a great way to help you slow down and relax. I’m a book nerd, and I love curling up under my blankets with a book before bed. It usually helps me feel sleepy faster, and I get a much more restful sleep than if I had been scrolling through social media instead.
Spend some time journaling.
Journaling in the evening is a great way to reflect on your day, express how you feel, and get some things off your mind before bed. I try to journal every night about whatever comes to mind. Every night, I also reflect on how my mental health was that day, and I write down one thing that made me happy. There are tons of different journaling methods you could try, and they’re all a great way to help you unwind in the evening.
Meditate and practice deep breathing.
I don’t meditate that often, but I find that when I meditate right before I go to bed, I fall asleep faster and have a deeper sleep. Meditation and deep breathing is scientifically proven to calm your body and mind, which makes it a great addition to your evening self-care practice.
Make a plan for the next day.
Instead of lying in bed obsessing over everything you have to remember to do the next day, take some time out of your evening to write everything down and make a plan. Once it’s written down, you may be less likely to keep yourself awake at night going through your to-do list, and you’ll be more likely to get a more restful sleep.
Creating an evening self-care routine will be the most beneficial if you make one that’s personalized and the best for you. Follow these steps, reflect on the habits you want to keep and those you’d be better off without, and decide what the best things are for you to include in your evening self-care routine that’ll help you unwind and get a restful sleep every night.
what do you think?