By: Lana Noredin. (She/Her/Hers)

March 1, 2021

 What is self-care? Self-care, or practicing self-care, are things that you do to take care of your mental and physical health. Why is self-care important? If you think about it, most people don’t remember to fully take care of themselves. Physical health is also very important. Yes, we do things to take care of our physical health like brushing our teeth every morning and before bed, remembering to eat breakfast every morning, and more, but have you ever thought about your mental health? Mental health is very important. It’s important to take care of your mental health and look out for yourself, just like how physical health is important so is your mental health.

How to have a good day:

Good days start with a good night’s rest, so sleep early! The night before, you should prepare for the next day. Have everything ready. You don’t need to set an alarm, but it is recommended. Start your day with a glass of water. Log into BBCU. It’s recommended to log in a minute earlier so that you’re not too late. After three periods, it’s time for everyone’s favorite part of the day, lunch. You can do whatever you want during this time. Here are some things to do for lunch: Go for a walk, listen to music, finish up some extra work, draw, etc. After class, the school’s done, what now? Do something to keep your mood up. 

How to relax after school: 

After all your classes are done, you can choose to go straight into homework or you can have a break and then finish up doing work. One thing you can do while doing homework/studying is listening to music. If you decide to take a break before, you can do things like using your device, play video games, watch your favorite TV Show/Anime/Movie, read, go on a walk, etc. After your break, start studying/doing homework. When you’re done, do something fun until your bedtime.“When an assignment or homework is given to you, finish it right away; ask for help when needed so you don’t get stressed; and complete things on time so you stress last minute.” -Diya Sharma, 7th Grade, She/Her/Hers

After homework: 

Congratulations! It’s the end of the day, you made it. You deserve to treat yourself. Some things you can do before going to bed are; Watching a movie, bake/cook, draw, read, take a warm bath/shower, do face masks with a friend, listen to music, create something, email a teacher and tell them that you appreciate them, text/call friends, have a movie night with a sibling/friend, etc.

Here are some tips from other students: 

“Always think, what does your dream self look and behave like? (don’t think materialistically, think how you can initiate an action using all the materials that you have). Practice that, even if it is not every day, if you can put in the effort to try, you will slowly like that, and get into the habit of trying.” – Misha Speede, 8th Grade, she/her/hers

“Remember that the most prominent person judging you is you, you have the choice to be accepting of yourself.” – Raine Jeff, 7th grade, they/them/theirs 

“Continue to look back and you’ll find yourself stuck in an infinite loop of torment, forgive yourself and move on.” – Anthony Ceto (Ceto-san in online games)

 “Take a break from social media for a week or a few days. Our brains need a break from the media and both its negative and positive things. None of the Instagram starts are “perfect”, you are just seeing their “highlight reel”. :)” – Korina Horvat, 7th grade, she/her/hers   

“Get rid of toxic people in your life, dress in clothes that fit you and that you like, do things you enjoy, remember that people won’t judge you on how you look or act as long and if they do distance yourself from them, talk to a trusted friend/adult about how you’re feeling, try out new things, practice good hygiene it makes you feel good, get enough sleep, take a break from social media.” – Alisa, 7th grade, she/her/hers

“It’s important to take a break from the things that stress you out.” – Nahom Daniel, grade 8 he/him/his