How to be kind to yourself

February 17th, in America, is Random Acts of Kindness Day, so here are some ways that you can be kind to yourself.

Random Acts of Kindness Day is celebrated in the United States on February 17th. Despite living in the United Kingdom, I think this is a day that we should all celebrate, and it got me thinking.

Why is there a Random Acts of Kindness Day? Should we not all strive to be kind all the time, to others, but also to ourselves?

In a world that is currently divided, we need to remember to be kind to ourselves and to look after ourselves, both mind and body.

So, below are some tips on how to be kind to yourself, which I hope will lift spirits and bring happiness.

Indulge in self-care

I've shared this tip before when discussing mental health, but it is just as important in this blog post. Self-care has only recently become an activity in the past few years, and it's one we should all try to do from time to time.

Looking after ourselves should be our number one goal in life because if you can't look after yourself properly, how do you expect to look after somebody else?

Indulging in self-care doesn't have to take up lots of time. It could be as short as 10 minutes. But try to do something that helps you relax; that allows your body to rest and feel good, and your mind to shut off for a few moments.

It could be taking a bubble bath, doing some meditation, or investing in a skincare routine before bed. As long as it makes you feel better, do it.

Enjoy your own company

This tip is probably quite a controversial one because a lot of people are social butterflies and are energised from spending time with family and friends. But we can't always be surrounded by people.

It's important to be content with who you are and okay being by yourself from time to time. So, one way of being kind to yourself could be going on a solo date.

You could go out for coffee, take yourself to the cinema (you can't really talk to friends during the movies anyway), or simply order a takeaway or cook a nice meal, and have a solo movie night at home.

I'm not saying we all must spend time with ourselves, but occasionally, having a moment to enjoy your own company can work wonders.

Be your own gift-giver

As Valentine's Day has just passed, this tip is quite apt. A lot of people don't have friends, family or a significant other to buy them gifts.

So why not buy yourself a gift?

Being kind to yourself means treating yourself from time to time, and one way to do that is to treat yourself to a little gift. It doesn't have to be big, but equally, it doesn't have to be small.

But gifting yourself a little present can bring a smile to your face and make you feel good by receiving something new, especially if it's something you've wanted for a while but never got around to purchasing.

Give yourself some grace

Life is tough. Things happen, and life doesn't always work out the way we hope it would. It's easy to blame ourselves or be angry at the world.

But we have to remember to give ourselves some grace.

It is easy to feel frustrated, even about things outside of our control, but we can't control or plan for everything. Sometimes life just happens.

We might not complete our list of chores. We might fall behind at work. We might forget to send a birthday card to a friend.

All of these things are normal and probably happen far more often than we think (we just don't know about them). So, for my final tip on how to be kind to yourself, I'm reminding you to give yourself some grace. To accept that, as much as we would like to be the next Captain America or Captain Marvel, superheroes aren't perfect, and every one of us can be our own hero if we learn to forgive ourselves.

If your world is looking a little bleak, or things are tough at the moment, then I hope these tips remind you how to be kind to yourself, and that that is just as important as being kind to others.

Until next time...