Have you ever heard of the “Do Not Disturb” feature on your cellular device? Stop being so focused on your phone and soak in what’s around you. Here are some tips to be more present and thus, happier. Turn on this feature before you go to bed, when you are trying to get work done, or occasionally when you are spending time with friends to free yourself from the technological shackles of social media. I feel that when you use this feature, you prioritize your own time and refuse to acknowledge the problems of others. 

How many times have you gone out with friends, looked up and found everyone staring into the glowing abyss in their hand. That is a perfect example of how not to be. Appreciate what you have in your surroundings. Your phone is always going to be there, so treasure the moments that you have so that you can love the person that you are becoming more. 

In one of my previous blogs, 3 Benefits of Having a Routine, we discovered how useful it is to have morning and night routines. A nice feature to include in your morning routine is stretching in order to loosen yourself up and be ready to take on the day. Stretching is beneficial to both the mind and body and should be done at least two days out of the week for 10 minutes according to the student health and counseling services at the University of California, Davis. I found some intriguing news about what stretching can do for you on the ACE Fitness website, I’ll cover some highlights of what they mentioned to express some unique beneficial features of stretching.

Stretching helps you improve your flexibility, posture, and reduces tension in the muscles, but it also promotes blood circulation in the body and reduces the risk of injury in the day to day dealings and in exercise. Aside from doing helping the body, stretching aids the mind. Since stretching increases blood flow in the body, when you stretch, your mind calms itself and your body attains more energy. It gives you a break from reality and it helps your body recharge itself so that you feel more prepared to take on the obstacles of the day.  

Self care comes in many different forms and can be applied both physically and mentally. In my experience, when I come up to a mentally disparaging road block, I give myself an opportunity to relax and think about ways to make myself feel better and analyze why I feel the way I do. In the midst of doing this, I have found that there are three things that I do that have worked wonders on my self-esteem and forced me to appreciate myself more often. 

No. 1: Try Listening to ASMR

Shhhhh! Listen! Listen! Listen! I know that the idea is a little far fetched, but there are so many different types of ASMR, I promise that it is not all just talking and eating videos. There are finger fluttering, finger tapping, water sounds and so much more. Think about a rainy day, the background noise of the rain outside is calming to people and the same calmness can be obtained from ASMR. If the idea is too far fetched for you then you should try listening to the sounds of the ocean or waterfalls to empty your mind of the baggage that it has built up throughout the day. Taking a moment to just exist and let the sounds consume you allow time to rid yourself of  stress so you can loosen up and rightfully give yourself the break that you deserve. I feel as though ASMR is a distant cousin to meditation because you are taking a moment to soak everything in through relaxation, and by giving yourself a moment of freedom from your worldly responsibilities, you are healing your mind.

No. 2: Be Your Own Cheerleader

Have you ever heard of words of affirmation? Think of words of affirmation as positive things that someone says to you that make you feel good about yourself and feel like everything is going to be O.K. Consider yourself as the positivity deliverer in your own life and I guarantee you that you will be happier. You don’t need anyone to tell you that you are a great person when you can do that for yourself. Of course, it is nice to hear nice words from others, but you should not let your peers dictate your self image. So, take some time to hype yourself up and fall in love with yourself. Look in the mirror and find your positive attributes, whether it be mental or physical and remind yourself that you are one of a kind. You are special. You are unique. You do not need the validation of others if know who you are and you know your worth. Recognize yourself as valuable and tell that you’re doing a great job to keep the positive juices flowing from the crevices of your mind and leaking into your beautiful reality. 

No 3: Be Honest with Yourself

Honesty is the best policy is how the saying goes in interpersonal relationships, but how about intrapersonal relationships? A really great way to go about loving yourself is to be honest with yourself. If you do something wrong and you recognize that what you did was wrong, reflect on the decisions you made and how you will fix it, and do better in the future. If something makes you upset, try looking at the situation from an objective viewpoint and figure out whether or not it’s worth taking up space in your head or not. Love yourself, but don’t put yourself on a pedestal of perfection because that only leads to disappointment. By being able to recognize your wrongdoings and fix them accordingly, you gain all the more reason to love yourself as you evolve into a wiser and more complex human being. 

A really great way to make yourself feel better and look better is to maintain a routine. Specifically, a night routine and a morning routine. In my experience, maintaining a morning and night routine helps me regulate my sleep cycle, keep my skin clear, and feel prepared to take on the day.

Benefit No. 1: Regulate Sleep Cycle

I’ve found that nothing beats routine. When you want to sleep for a crisp 8 hours every night, a night routine can help you fulfill that wish. You start by giving yourself a bedtime and arranging when you would like to brush your teeth and put on your pajamas prior. Personally, I take a shower, dry off, brush my teeth and floss, wash my face, put on face cream, moisturize, prep my hair for bed, the take off my face cream, then put on pajamas and listen to some ASMR to destress. When you do a routine that works for you every night, it will become easier and easier for you to naturally fall asleep. You should sleep at your bedtime and have an arranged wake up time to keep your sleep consistent. No one enjoys feeling fatigued and gross when they wake up, so forcing yourself to wake up at the same time every day can help you get acquainted with feeling energized or, to the very least, accepting of the fact that it is time to get a move on with your day and start your morning routine.

Benefit No. 2: You Feel Prepared to Take on the Day

When I wake up in the morning, it takes me some time to recharge and get my brain to start working the way I would like it to. However, once I have completed my morning routine, I feel like nothing can bring me down. It all starts with me rolling out of bed and dragging myself to the restroom. I lazily brush my teeth, floss and wash my face, then I put on a face cream and let it sit. After covering my face in Noxzema, I do my hair, and by the time I finish doing my hair, the cream has worked its magic and I wash it off and go put clothes on so I can take on the day. After doing this, my breath is fresh, my face is clean and tingly, and I look good, nothing can bring me down. I strongly advise adopting routine of your own so that you can look in the mirror and feel motivated to go pursue whatever you desire with confidence and energy.

Benefit No. 3: Clear Skin

This begins with buying skin care products that you feel work for you, like a Noxzema face mask, Proactive, nose strips, or any other skin care items. Once you purchase your desired skin care item, follow the instructions on frequency and figure out what works best for you. So, if you are supposed to use it twice a day, incorporate it into your morning and night routine and if it’s only once a day use, you could just use it at night. By constantly taking care of your skin and exfoliating, you work up to feeling fresh and seeing your acne disappear before your eyes. A routine engrains the self care in your head so that you are caring for yourself without even thinking about it. You eventually work up to the point where it feels effortless.

Do you have a special routine that you do in the morning or at night? If so, drop your routine in the comments below and tell me about how it has worked for you!

 Before diving into the tips that will help you get your daily water intake, let’s discuss the benefits of drinking water and be aware of all the good it can do for you. According to the CDC and the Harvard Medical School, drinking water regulates body temperature, normalizes blood pressure, stabilizes your heartbeat, lubricates and cushions joints, frees your body of waste and does many more extraordinary duties for your body. Having problems with your skin? Try drinking some water. Your throat feels dry? Try some water. Are your hair and nails not growing the way you want them to? Go pour yourself a cup of that liquid gold. Overall, water is a drink that just makes you feel good and keeps your body healthy and happy. To learn more about these benefits, visit this link for the CDC and this link for Harvard Medical School. Now that we have discussed the benefits, let’s get into these four useful tips to take your water tank from empty to full!

Tip No. 1: Order Water When You Go Out to Eat

I know this is a bit of a bummer, but think about the next time you will actually invest time into drinking water. Order a water when you go to a restaurant. It is cheaper, healthier, and can help you reach your 64 ounces for the day before you even realize it. 

Tip No. 2: Buy a Reusable Water Bottle

When you buy yourself a water bottle, you are investing money into your well being. This is because once you spend your hard earned money on such an object, you would not want it to go to waste, which obligates you to use it more and more often. Aside from this, when you carry it around with you and invest time into drinking and refilling, you reach your daily 64 ounces before you even know it. And on top of all of this, IT’S REUSABLE AND ECO-FRIENDLY. Congratulations you eco-warrior, not only are you caring for yourself, but the planet around you!

Tip No. 3: Try the Water Gallon Challenge

Have you ever heard of the water gallon challenge. It is a challenge where you get a jug of water and you drink the whole gallon by the end of the day. That means drinking twice as much water as your body absolutely needs. You do this every day for an entire month and take note of the differences in your body versus when you first started. I read an article where a woman reflected on how she felt through a log throughout her 30 days and she claimed that it really made a difference in her life. To read more about this article, just click the link: https://www.outsideonline.com/2377851/water-gallon-challenge-month. 

Try this challenge out and see how your body changes, the water constantly works to clear your body of unwanted waste and makes your organs happy, resulting in you feeling a lot better as the days go by. To drink that much water, as mentioned in the article linked above, there is less fatigue in your day to day routine and you may start feeling more energized. This challenge is a great excuse to get hydrated and appreciate the effect that water has on the body. 

Tip No. 4: Download an app

You can carry a 24-ounce water bottle or a gallon of water with you all day and still forget that it is even there. So, how are these tips going to be useful if there is no means of holding yourself accountable for hydration? In one easy step, this forgetful plague can disappear. Download an app. There are plenty of free water apps that remind you to periodically get your water intake and track how much you drink throughout the day to help you stay healthy. Go to your app store and try downloading Drink water: Drinking reminder, My Water Balance, Daily Water Tracker Reminder, Drink Water Aquarium, or any other free app that helps you remember to hydrate!

Do you have any tips of your own? Have you tried any of the tips listed above, if so, how did it work out for you? Please leave your answers in the comments below!