How To Enjoy 'Me' Time

For some of us 'me' time can be quite a rare thing to experience, between a busy schedule or being surrounded by lots of people every single day, sometimes we can forget to have a few moments away for ourselves to relax and unwind from a busy period. I use to hate being on my own. I could not stand my own company. I always wanted to be around other people whatever my mood. Part of it had to do with my over anxious mind, knowing that if I was around people it would be a distraction from having to listen to the other voice in my head and also because I just love being able to make memories and socialise with the people closest to me. 

But since becoming a single woman and not being in a relationship for over six months now, I've actually fallen in love with being on my own and spending sometime away from the world to just relax and enjoy my time to myself. It's definitely helped me to focus more on myself in terms of improving my mental health by being kinder to myself and taking care of myself especially through harder moments. I've also been able to find new hobbies and things I love to do which has helped boost my moods also.

I thought I would share with you some things you can do to enjoy me time, because it is super important you have the time to yourself, even if it's only for a few moments once a week or every half an hour each evening. Christmas is the perfect time for you to take a moment for yourself to unwind from the crazy year and festive stresses. You need that time to yourself. So please do make time for it.

Read a book - Reading is the perfect way to unwind from the day. It gives you the chance to sit quietly by yourself and escape the everyday stresses into a completely different world altogether. You can spend hours getting lost into a good book and will end up feeling so much more relaxed afterwards.

Catch up on a TV series or watch a movie - Sitting down under a blanket on the sofa with your favourite TV series on or a new exciting movie to watch can be a great me time activity. If you haven't got anything to catch up on, you can always start something new or re watch an old favourite TV series of yours. I'm always rewatching old PLL and TVD.

Take care of yourself - Run a warm bath, put lots of bubbles in or maybe your favourite bath bomb, sit back and just relax. Spend your alone time just taking care of yourself and having a little pamper. You could pop on a face mask and test out some skin care products to leave your skin feeling smooth and cleansed. Pop on a fresh pair of pyjamas after you come out of the bath and give yourself a little manicure or pedicure. Do whatever will make you feel and look good.

Get creative - A me time activity that you can always continue to come back to is those that involve you getting creative. Start your own scrapbook of your favourite holiday snaps over the years or summer memories or instead you could focus on a subject area you're in interested in like fashion or interiors. This is something you can always come back to and keep adding, then look back on with years to come. Other creative ideas could be colouring, drawing, painting, writing, knitting, sewing etc.

Bake or cook your favourite meal - Treat yourself to whatever your favourite dish or baked treat is. You could even do both if you're feeling extra kind to yourself. This will be sure to get those taste buds going and put a smile on your face when you can enjoy the delicious pieces you've created all for yourself.

Listen to music - Head on over to Spotify and whack on the Christmas playlists. Put on your favourite album in the car on the way home for work. Having a sing song can put you in such a good mood, especially when it's your favourite hits!

Take a walk - Walking has so many health benefits. Not only is exercise obviously good for you physically, but walking also helps you mentally by boosting your mood through the release of feel good hormones. Take a walk round your local area or drive to somewhere new and go exploring. If you fancy,  you could even bring a furry four legged friend for a little bit of company.

Shopping - Treating yourself is something we should all do more of. Head to your favourite store(s) or jump online, have a good browse or finally purchase whatever it is that you've been after for the longest time. Going shopping by yourself helps you to concentrate more on yourself and you don't have to worry about anyone else.

Put the phone down - Social media and looking at our phone constantly can sometimes be toxic for our wellbeing. Sometimes its good to put the phone down and take a step back into the real world. Use this time focus on you and what is is you want to achieve away from the online and tech world. You'll also be giving your eyes a rest from staring at a screen and your mind a breather.

Take a nap - If all else fails or you're burnt out, then just simply go take a nap. Catch up on some sleep or take yourself away from the everyday worries you're currently facing. 

How do you enjoy your 'me' time?

Lauren x