How to Love Yourself: Self Care Tips from Guud Woman

If you’re like a lot of women, you might prioritize your job, your kids, family or other obligations first. While you may have the urge to be a superhuman; working around the clock, we’re here to tell you that it’s alright to take a break once in a while and take care of yourself! 

Sharing your love with others is a wonderful thing, but if self-care has been low on your to-do list, now is the time to start making some changes. Yes, ladies. It’s time to start giving some of that love to a very important person in your life: YOU! 

 In this post, we’ll give you some practical advice on how to practice self-love and self-care. We promise, there’s enough love to go around. ❤️

Signs You Might Need More Self Care 

You might think you’re doing alright. Maybe you’re busy, but you’re coping. Maybe you think you don’t have time for self-care. Before we get into this post, it’s important to ask yourself a few questions: 

• Does your life direction feel unclear? 
• Are you trying to do your best at work / at home, but something is just not clicking? 
• Do you struggle to start or finish things? 
• Do you trust your gut? 
• Do you feel tired all the time? 
• Do you feel resentful of people in your life? 
• Do you feel disconnected from the things you care about?
• Is your sex drive low or non-existent? 

If you answered yes to any of these questions, it could mean you need more self-care. Of course, everyone can benefit from self-care practices - after all, it’s important for optimal hormonal health and essential to look, feel and perform at your best.  

Why Self Care is Important 

If you struggle from period problems like PMS, bloating, acne, mood swings or feeling tired all the time, your body might be trying to tell you something. It could be that your current lifestyle is harming your body and your cycle. Making a few lifestyle changes and adding in some self-care rituals to your regular routines can often help maintain your energy, give you more clarity and support your overall health.  

Remember: self-care doesn’t need to be the same every day. Because of our menstrual cycle, we’re not the same each week of the month, so our self-care needs will change according to our cycle. Much like how you can sync your cycle with different activities, you should also try to align your self-care practices with the different phases of your cycle. This releases any pressure you might feel to “fit in” everything into your schedule. You’ll also likely feel better too because your self-care practices will align with your unique needs every week. We can’t promise life-altering changes, but we’re pretty confident that you’ll experience more joy, better organization and less overwhelm.

It sounds ideal, right? Here’s how to do it  

Want to know more about cycle syncing? Read our post: Cycle Syncing: Why is it So Guud? 

Daily Affirmations

Affirmations are positive statements, repeated in your head or out loud, that help boost your self-worth and confidence. They can also inspire action to help you achieve your goals. When you find an affirmation that works for you and say it regularly, it can also help alleviate feelings of panic, stress, self-doubt and anxiety. 

We know affirmations are just words. But words can be powerful. If you’re feeling like you might just skip the rest of this section, thinking “affirmations are for hippies,” we ask you to hold off making any snap judgements and give it a chance. If you practice affirmations regularly, you’ll see first-hand how you can achieve better health just by tapping into the power of the mind! 

How do you pick an affirmation? That’s up to you. But here’s a few we like to help get you started:  

• I love myself just as I am today
• I am enough
• I deserve joy
• I choose to be kind to myself
• It is natural for me to love myself
• I am grateful to be the person I am
• I love each part of myself
• I appreciate all the ways that I am unique
• I am good at many things
• Anything is possible in my life

 Pick one from the list above and repeat it a few times in your mind. When you feel doubt creeping in, repeat it again. If you want, make a habit of repeating your mantra each morning during an already established habit like brushing your teeth, putting on makeup or making a cup of coffee.  

Self Care Practices

There’s a huge range of self-care practices you could choose to add to your life. The key is finding the ones that work for you. Self-care is sometimes seen as indulgent and selfish, but the reality is that when you take time for yourself, you can be better in all other aspects of your life. Also, it’s important to remember to treat yourself with kindness during your period. Hormones will mean that you might be feeling low both in terms of mood and energy so you need to respect your own feelings during this phase of your cycle. This could mean that you carry on with life as normal, or you may want to slow things down regarding exercise and social plans. 

When you think about self-care, you might conjure up images of back massages and lengthy spa sessions. While this is a form of self-care, it’s important to remember that taking time for yourself can take many forms. Here are a few ideas: 

• Meditate - pick a short meditation online or through an app and listen to the soothing sounds of a expert guide you to relaxation. You can also just take time to breathe deeply
• Get moving - go for a walk in nature or hit the gym. Whatever you’re in the mood for! 
• Organise something - pick a drawer or closet and organize it. This can give you a sense of control if your life is feeling chaotic. You can also organize your social media platforms by unfollowing any account that does not bring you joy
• Get creative - indulge in a creative hobby like painting, drawing or sculpting. You could also do something digital like taking photographs, making a collage, designing a poster or editing images 
• Write - whether its a letter, a journal entry, song, poem or short story, just write something and see what comes out
• Have a bath - roll out the salts or the bubble bath and luxuriate in the tub for a bit

There are so many more options. The secret is finding what works for you and brings you joy. And remember: you actually don’t have to do the same thing every time. The way you care for yourself can change based on your needs. It’s not about what you do, it’s about doing something regularly. 

Set Boundaries 

If you think about how to love yourself, it starts by focusing on yourself! The first step is to set boundaries on how you’ll spend your time. Try to stay away from time-sucking activities that do not add joy to your life. Obviously, we all have to do unpleasant things from time to time, like cleaning the toilet or doing our taxes, but try to eliminate things you do all the time that drain your energy. 

Also, don’t feel guilty saying no. We know it’s hard, especially if it involves saying no to invitations or social gatherings. But remember: saying no occasionally does not make you a bad person. It actually makes you smart. Protect yourself and your time. 

Supplements for Self Care

Taking targeted, high-quality supplements designed specifically for your biochemistry is the best way to ensure your body is getting what it needs. And what better way to show self-love than to nourish your body from the inside out! 

To find out what supplements are Guud for you, talk to us. We can help you build the ultimate self-care bundle to support your cycle, your hormones and your overall health.