Sometimes learning a new and fun skill is an effective way of improving your self-care. And what better way to learn a new self-care skill than to make your own essential oils? Besides learning a new skill, having your own homemade essential oil bottle made from simple ingredients from your garden, beauty cabinet, and pantry can reduce anxiety and help improve sleep.

Sure, listening to audiobooks is fun and convenient, but there is something extra special about holding a physical book. The sound of the pages as you flip through chapters and the smell of the book is the best part about physical books (and, of course, the storylines as well). If you haven’t gone to your local library in a long time, consider adding this fun activity to your calendar!

If outdoor hobbies like going on a bike ride are not how you would like to spend your free time, there are other free self-care ideas that you can try, such as coloring. There has been a rise in adult coloring books and doodle sketchpads. Yep, coloring books are not reserved for young kids anymore! Older adults can now enjoy coloring some beautiful designs to relax their minds.

Another self-care idea you can try is reducing your time on social media. I know you have probably read about the benefits of this a million times already, but this small change can give your mind a little reboot! Use your phone to keep track of how long you have spent on your apps in a week. Based on this information, you can determine how many minutes you want to spend on each app.

It is so easy to forget about the good, especially with the current new’s cycle and this age of social media where comparison is at an all-time high. Everyone’s lives appear to be perfect on Instagram and it’s only a matter of time until you start to compare your life to the people you follow. If you find yourself doing this a lot, the best thing to do is practice gratitude to help maintain a positive mindset.

It is no secret that good comfort food can make bad days a little bit better. Especially when you stumble across a new recipe that you love! To keep it free, you can create a new dish by incorporating existing ingredients from your refrigerator into your meals. Experimenting with foods and finding new recipes for your work lunches can be a self-care activity you can do every week.