Having a self-care night routine is important for many reasons. It can help you wind down from a long day, relax your mind and body, and prepare for a good night’s sleep.
Just imagine the mental, physical, and plethora of wellness benefits you’ll experience over time from implementing a self-care night routine. A nighttime self-care routine can also be a great way to show yourself some love and care.
If you’re looking to level up your self-care game, here are 14 ways to do it.
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How to Have a Self-Care Night
The only thing you need to focus on during your self-care night is YOU. Whether that means taking a relaxing bath, reading your favorite book, or doing a skincare routine you love, do whatever makes you feel happy and relaxed.
If eliminating distractors is hard to do, try setting a rule for yourself that you won’t check your phone after a certain time. This will help you disconnect from work and social media so you can focus on relaxing.
14 Things To Do On A Self-Care Night
1. Pamper Your Skin
Give yourself an at-home facial using your favorite products. Gently cleanse, exfoliate, tone, and moisturize your skin for a refreshed feeling.
My favorite skincare products that I use daily are none other than ingredients derived from donkey milk and argan oil. The ingredients we actively choose to use and put in our bodies are a form of practicing self-care so, making an effort to use all-natural and organic products on your skin is a step in the right direction!
Editor-approved skin care: Ixora BB Botanicals
2. Incorporate some self-massage
Self-massage is a great way to relax your muscles and reduce stress. Try using a foam roller, massage ball, or your hands to massage your neck, back, and legs.
The lactic acid many of us experience from working out can also be soothed through self-massage. My go-to method is using a medium to high-density foam roller that has a storage feature for me to store my band and tennis ball while I roll out my muscles.
Editor-approved foam roller: Massage Roller with End Caps
3. Get rid of any electronics from your bedroom
As part of your self-care routine checklist, it’s important to make sure your bedroom is an electronics-free zone. This means no TV, no laptop, and no phone in bed. Having screens in your bedroom can make it harder to fall asleep and can disrupt your sleep cycle.
If you can, charge your phone in another room and leave any other electronics out of your bedroom. This way, you can fully relax and disconnect from the world for a little while. To help make this transition a little smoother for you, build night habits by incorporating a self-care tracker.
Editor-approved tracker: Self-Care Weekly Audit
4. Take a relaxing bath
A warm bath is a perfect way to unwind before bed. Add some soothing aromatherapy or add a few drops of lavender oil to help you relax even more. There’s something about taking deliberate action to ensure you receive relaxation in your own oasis.
Related Blog Post: Relaxing Bathroom Ideas
5. Allocate different soaps, and bath bombs to specific relaxing nights
This keeps the element of surprise and excitement in your night self-care routine. Even if it’s just a different scent or color, it’ll feel like a special treat.
Short on night routine ideas? In our recent blog post, I listed ways you could elevate your self-care bath, and let me just tell you now that there’s nothing better than mixing and varying up your own night self-care bath routine.
Related Blog Post: Self-Care Bath Ideas
6. Give yourself a foot massage
After a long day, your hands and feet could use some extra love. Give yourself a quick massage with some lotion or essential oils. This will help you relax and can also help improve circulation.
My favorite tool to use when the muscles in my feet are tight is a massage gun. I love that it comes with different speeds and attachments so I can customize my massage.
Editor-approved tool: Handheld Massage Gun
7. Stretch or do some light yoga
This is a great way to release any tension from your body and prepare for a good night’s sleep. There are plenty of yoga routines specifically designed for bedtime, one of my favorite ways to find a new routine is by using one of my fitness apps.
Related Blog Post: Move Reminder Apps
8. Read a few pages of a book
This is a great way to disconnect from technology and clear your mind before bed. Choose a book that you enjoy and that will help you relax.
One of my favorite books to read before bed is non-fiction ones with leading black characters because it’s not only enjoyable, but I love getting to know characters that are relatable, and reminiscent of a few people in my own life.
Related Blog Post: Spring Books
9. Write down your thoughts
One self-care night idea that I’ve been implementing is brain-dumping before bed. If you’re struggling to fall asleep, sometimes it can help to write down either the first thing that comes to mind or write in a way that allows you to identify how your overall day was.
If you’re craving more structure, try finding some self-love shadow work prompts to help guide your thoughts. This can help clear your mind and allow you to focus on sleep.
Related Blog Post: Shadow Work Prompts
10. Listen to calm music
Listening to calm exemplifies the definition of a solid nighttime self-care routine. It allows you to forget about the day’s tasks and relax. I love listening to Spotify playlists that hone in on certain genres like lofi hip hop or jazz hop.
Editor-Approved Playlist: Kb in Bloom
11. Prepare everything you need for the next day before going to bed
This will help you feel more organized and less stressed when you wake up in the morning. Make sure you have your clothes laid out, your bag packed, and anything else you need ready to go.
Related Blog Post: Self-Care Saturday Ideas
12. Go to bed at the same time every night
Having a set bedtime can help you establish a healthy sleep schedule. Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day will help your body get into a rhythm and make it easier to fall asleep at night.
Editor-Approved Alarm: Bedside Speaker
13. Read affirmations before bed
This is a great way to remind yourself of your self-worth while promoting advocacy for a night self-care routine. Outside of the affirmations found right here on the blog, you can grab an e-book of affirmations all originally written by me.
Editor-Approved Tool: Sis, Be at Ease.
14. Mix a herbal blend with a beverage you can customize
There are so many great herbs out there that can help you relax and sleep better. Some of my favorites are by Peak +Valley. I really love their chocolate-based herbal blend, add 1 tsp to coffee, milk, or tea.
Editor-Approved Tea: Peak+ Valley, Balance My Stress Blend
Self-Care Routine Ideas
There are many different ways to level up your night self-care routine. By adding some simple steps, you can make your night self-care routine more effective and enjoyable.
Remember to be patient with yourself as you develop new habits and find what works best for you. With a little effort, you can have a night self-care routine that you look forward to every night.
2 comments
this is a great list for improving sleep hygiene. personally although I know that your site is mainly for women but this topic is one that would apply universally to everyone.
Hey Jeri! This list can definitely apply to anyone, men and women included. Thank you for stopping by.