This week was one big practice of self-care and self-love.
I spent a good amount of time doing things exclusively for me, and I practiced turning things down that didn’t fit in my schedule. For the first time in a long time, I feel productive for the right reasons.
First, I participated in OrangeTheory Fitness’s Hell Week. Hell Week is essentially the 8 days leading up to Halloween in which the daily workouts are meant to push you further than usual. In order to complete Hell Week, you have to finish 5 of the 8 workouts. I decided to challenge myself and go for 7 straight days, partially because I’m currently out of town for Halloween and partially because I just wanted to see if I could accomplish it. For those of you who don’t know, exercise is an extremely important component to my mental healthcare, so Hell Week was right up my alley. Participating in Hell Week was so important to me, and I’m so proud of myself for the work I put in.
Other than working out, I started going to Restore Hyper Wellness, which is exactly how it sounds. Restore is a wellness facility that offers compression therapy, stretch therapy, cryotherapy, red light therapy, and—my personal favorite so far—an infrared sauna. It also offers IV and IM treatments to provide nutrients to promote things like energy and immunity. I’ve noticed a huge difference in the way my body feels after literally one week of going to Restore, and it feels so good to finally be taking care of myself like that. Of course, you don’t need to go to a wellness center to take care of yourself, but it’s definitely been helpful for me.
Other than taking care of my physical health, I did some more stereotypical self-care practices. I’ve wanted to get my lashes done for so long, and I finally went to do it this week. I also got my nails done. While going to the spa or getting cosmetic improvements to yourself shouldn’t be the only way you practice self-care, nor is it self-care on its own, it is a way I practice self-love. I know that sounds counterintuitive, but when I get this kind of thing done, I feel good. I think I’m beautiful with or without nails, with or without lashes, but they give me an extra little boost of confidence. I also don’t care what other people think about them. I do it because I want to, not because I want others to like the way I look. If I’m being honest, most people have probably judged me for doing all these extra cosmetic things, but here’s the thing, I simply don’t care what they think. At the end of the day, I’m the one who has to live with me, and I’m going to do what I have to do to make myself happy.
Going back to therapy has taught me to value my time, my thoughts, and truly myself. I’m the happiest I’ve been in a long time, possibly my whole life, and it’s because I’m prioritizing myself. I know every week can’t look like this week, but I encourage you all to do something for yourself this week. What makes you happy? What makes you feel like the best version of you? Whatever it is, go out and treat yourself because you deserve it.
As always, stay safe and stay healthy.
Xo,
Kayla W