Ways To Practice Bliss Care

What is bliss-care?

BLISS-CARE is what we at SwellWomen refer to as self-care. The act of taking care of oneself has become a buzz-worthy topic for a dang good reason. It's an absolute essential, especially now when life, for many, has thrown us for a loop.

Bliss-care, as we know it today, has become a valuable strategy for easing symptoms of stress and anxiety and a great way to decompress from a stressful day or week. This is why we are sharing our Top 5 Bio-Individual Ways to Practice Bliss-Care.

Let's clarify a couple of things before moving on - bliss-care spans across physical, mental, and spiritual health. What do we mean by bio-individual? Bio-individuality is what makes YOU feel good and whole, which may be different from what your partner, friend, or coworker needs to feel the same way. So it's more important than ever to take inventory of what makes you feel happy because it's incredibly personal and bio-individual.

To help you find what works for you, we've compiled five ways to practice bliss-care that can be practiced in ways that are unique to you. 

1. Fit in time for movement. Bliss-care to most means slowing down, so ask yourself, "What movement will make me feel good today?" And whatever that is – HIIT, boxing, swimming, running, surfing, yoga, etc. – do what feels right for you.

2. Cook a comforting meal. It's easy to lean on takeout, especially when you feel like you need to "treat yourself" for a bliss-care evening, but nourishing your body with food that you took the time to prepare can be remarkable. If you're able, meal prepping your lunches or dinners for the week will give you the energy to focus on other important life things while also having home-cooked meals at the ready when you're super busy.

3. Take a shower or a bath. Sometimes the smaller and simpler things in your everyday routine can be reframed as bliss-care, such as taking a shower or bath. This can be a fantastic way to show yourself care and love if you're having a particularly challenging day and can also help you prepare for restful sleep. If you want to make this time a little juicer, try adding a hot towel scrub or using a body scrub before you luxuriate in the shower or bath. 

4. Incorporate meditation into your daily routine. It may seem ironic to recommend apps on your phone to facilitate bliss-care, but meditation apps can help you create and sustain a regular meditation practice. They've been shown to improve concentration and attention, reduce anxiety, and provide many neurological benefits. We love using the Insight Timer app, but you can explore the wide variety on offer to see what works for you.

5. Set daily or monthly affirmations. We swear by the power of affirmations. Affirmations are statements that allude to goals you wish to achieve or positive, encouraging statements to help remind you daily that you're on the path to cultivating more bliss. When working towards a bliss-care goal, we like to use a specific affirmation to stay on track.

The take-away, make bliss-care a regular part of daily routine, not just something you occasionally do.  Cultivate bliss-care into your day creates practices that become healthy habits. Taking care of yourself doesn't need to be relegated to one night a week, nor does it need to be an elaborately planned event. It could be as small as a daily 10-minute walk to break up the afternoon at work. Taking small inspired steps every day to build bliss-care into your daily routine can have a significant positive impact on your health and happiness, which is our ultimate goal, right?