What Is Self Care?
Self care, two words we hear all of the time. You’re one google-search away from stumbling upon a slew of different routines to draw inspiration from – but what is it really? Self care can be defined as the process of establishing a healthy routine to ensure a sense of well-being, promote health, and actively manage stress levels for an overall more relaxed state of being.
Self care methods can be broken down into seven pillars that include mental, emotional, physical, environmental, spiritual, recreational, and social. The goal is to achieve a well-balanced self care routine that involves each of these pillars.
But let’s be real – raise your hand if you followed a self care routine that just didn’t stick. *We’d raise ours, but typing with one hand is a little tricky. This is why establishing one that works for you and your needs is far more important than adapting to one that may not fit your lifestyle.
Why Is It Important?
Establishing a self-care routine that works for you is important for sooo many reasons:
It Reduces Stress: Life can throw all sorts of crazy curveballs: From burnout at work or friends and family demands – Life can be hectic as f*ck. Creating self-care activities can help reduce your stress levels and provide a greater sense of relaxation and calmness that you *so* deserve.
Physical Health Improves: Regular self-care practices, like exercise, eating nutrient-dense meals, and ample rest, can contribute to an overall increase in physical well-being. Showing your body some love through nutrition and movement that works for you has been shown to prevent illnesses, boost your immunity, and increase overall energy levels.
Boosts in Mental Health: Self-care plays a significant role in boosting your mental health. Creating a self-care routine aids in reducing symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other mental health challenges. Taking time for yourself allows you to recharge your mental batteries and improves your emotional health.
Increased Productivity Levels: Prioritizing self care practices can lead to becoming more focused, motivated, and productive – and who doesn’t love that? Taking breaks *yes, fellow workaholics, we’re talking to you* and engaging in activities or hobbies that bring you joy can reinvigorate your mind and improve your ability to concentrate on tasks. So, take this as your sign to sign up for that weekend pottery class or join in on that book club that meets every week.
Better Relationships: We’ve all heard the expression, “You can’t take care of others until you take care of yourself,” well – we think that’s 100% true. When we choose to take care of ourselves, we’re ready to be present to nurture healthy relationships with those around us. Self-care enables you to communicate effectively, set boundaries better, and constructively handle conflicts.
It Creates Self-Compassion: Creating a self-care routine is all about learning how to treat yourself with kindness and compassion. This practice helps us build a positive self-view and boost our self-esteem.
How Does Self Care Help Your Cycle?
When it comes to our menstrual cycle, we are all about diving into our self care practices. Having a self-care practice for all phases of your cycle is especially important because menstruation comes with so many physical and emotional changes in your body. During this time, some menstruators may experience discomfort, pain, mood swings, fatigue, and heightened sensitivity. Creating self-care activities that work for you can help alleviate all symptoms and moods to better manage your cycle.
Best Ways to Take Care on Your Period
Track Your Symptoms
Symptom tracking is a great way to understand what you need when certain symptoms persist during your period. Tracking with the Orchyd App is perfect for knowing what to expect each month and how to adapt your self care routine to meet your needs.
Take Your Supplements
For most of us menstruators, we can become fairly fatigued, and our bowel movements start to act a fool during our period. This is where nutritional gaps can meet the moment with the Orchyd Marketplace. ASYSTEM’s IMMUNITY+ is *chef’s kiss* when it comes to boosting your overall well-being and genuinely helping with getting rid of that feeling of not wanting to move from your bed. WTHN’s Daily Digestion supplement is our go-to for digestion issues that may occur during our period. It’s jam-packed with nutrients that soothe aching tummies and truly help with bloating.
Meditate
Whether it’s five or forty-five minutes, get your meditation on. Seriously.
Not only will it give you peace of mind, but your hormones will thank you. We love doing so with the Ear Seed Kit by WTHN to reduce stress, relieve pain, and restore hormonal balance during this phase of our cycle.
Optimize Sleep
Sleep is your BFF, both on and off of your period. During this phase of the menstrual cycle, insomnia can occur and disrupt our natural sleep cycle – but we have a few faves on rotation that send us snoozing. Relax Drops by NOON and Lights Out gummies by Xula have become our CBD essentials for falling asleep and staying asleep. Not a fan of CBD? No probs. The Dream patch by The Good Patch is perfect for catching ZZZs with the help of melatonin and other amazing natural supplements.
Eat Well and Stay Hydrated
Eating nutrient-dense meals and snacks is crucial for hormone health and overall boosts in well-being during our periods. Snack on Nootropic Dark Chocolate by NOON for a tasty treat made of real, whole foods or sip on something comforting like Warm Feelings tea by The Fullest.
Skincare
Creating a skincare ritual during our period has become a perfect way to give our skin some TLC. Start your skincare session with 100% medical-grade silicone face and body patches by Dermaclara, and nourish your skin with CBD Glow Oil by Not Pot.
Connect With a Doctor to Learn More (Orchyd MD™)
After reading this headline, you may be asking yourself, “What does seeing a medical professional have to do with self care?”.
The answer is simple: Healthcare is self care. Whether it’s addressing symptoms in relation to your menstrual cycle, or any questions you have regarding warning signs of PCOS, PMDD, or something else — Our team of doctors are ready to assist on Orchyd MD™.