Eco Friendly Self Care Ideas to Unwind and Relax
Life is hard and our mental and physical well being so important, we often take time to look after our physical health, but mental health also very important and needs to be practiced.
Golf
I can not say I know much about this except my husband seem far more relaxed after a good game of golf and who doesn’t want a happy husband !
Gardening
Gardening can improve your mood, lower stress and make you feel more relaxed and apparently, it can even reduce your dementia risk.
Gardening certainly goes beyond self care. It boosts your overall health.
From the environmental perspective, the world is better off with more plants. The more, the merrier!
Plants purify air, release oxygen and trap carbon dioxide during the day.
You can also grow your very own food.
They’ll be fresher, organic and more sustainable. Think about the lower carbon footprint of your food when it doesn’t have to be transported from the farm to your door.
If you cannot garden then try indoor plants that are super easy to maintain like succulents, snake plants and aloe vera plants.
If you have a green thumb, then try an indoor herb garden.With herbs like Basil, cilantro, parsley, sage, and thyme.
Be sure to visit your local garden center too. Pick up mint, rosemary, seedlings and more. Herbs like mint, basil and rosemary are easy to propagate so you can turn one plant into many.
Gift the new plants to your friends – that’s a great zero waste gift idea!
There’s no need to buy plant pots either. Repurpose containers you already have.
Grow your own food scraps like chives, lettuce, and cilantro. Or plant sweet pepper and tomato seeds and watch them germinate into tens of tiny seedlings.
It’s always exciting and stress relieving to take care of plants.
Drink some warm tea
Relax with a calming cup of warm tea.
Now, if you started that garden, you could pick a few leaves of your favorite herb like mint. Wash them, add to your cup, pour in hot water and allow them to steep for a few minutes.
How simple! You just made your own organic, sustainable, zero waste, loose leaf tea.
When you’re done sipping, add the leaves back to the soil. It’s perfectly zero waste!
Switch off your tech
Or at least put it on silent.
News feeds and social media can take a toll on your mental health, increasing feelings of depression, hopelessness, and anxiety.
You don’t need those feelings in your life. So, ditch the tech and embrace me-time. Do anything on this list
But, if you’re finding it hard to kick the social media habit, take baby steps. Commit to 10 minutes while you sip your tea. Slowly, but surely, you’ll build social media immunity.
Make an eco friendly self care mask
Sheet masks are not exactly zero waste and you don’t need the sheets themselves. Simple ingredients can make wonderful face and hair masks.
Use flaxseeds to make a gel mask. All you have to do is boil the seeds in water until it becomes jelly-like. Strain and use as a moisturizing, skin tightening mask. It’s also wonderful for that.
If you got that aloe vera plant for your indoor garden, you can harvest the leaves for another one-ingredient beauty gel.
Other ingredients and combos you can try:
your favorite skin oil like coconut oil
honey
avocado
turmeric
egg whites
oats (exfoliant)
coffee grounds (exfoliant)
sugar (exfoliant)
Himalayan salt (exfoliant)
chickpea flour (exfoliant)
bentonite clay (exfoliant)
Mix, match and patch test and enjoy these ingredients in your eco friendly self care face masks.
Exercise
Exercise releases endorphins. You know this.
So, take a little walk around the neighborhood or even in your own home. A few hundred steps should get those feel good hormones flowing. They’ll make you less stressed or anxious.
Did you know sunlight is linked to higher serotonin and endorphin levels? Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that boosts mood and helps with memory and learning. So, catch some rays while on your walkabout.
If you don’t have the space to get a nice walk in, then dance on the spot. Music is very good for the soul and singing helps as well !
Get your blood pumping and the endorphins flowing. You don’t have to spend any money to do it.
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