Self-care practices can be especially effective when we consider the season and embrace the natural vibes for that time of year. Autumn is a “cozy” time of year, and although stepping out of our comfort zone is healthy from time to time, fall self-care practices emphasize tapping into the comforts of familiarity.
Fall Self-Care is All About the Season
Fall brings about a lot of change, from cooler weather forecasts to earlier nights.
However, autumnal festivities and traditions give us a backdrop of familiarity to find comfort in.
Here are several ways to practice self-care this season.
Indulge in a Warm Beverage
During fall and winter, a warm drink can be especially soothing to us.
The cooler temperatures make it a great time to bundle up in a blanket and sip on a cup of something comforting.
Fall features many autumnal classic flavors to enjoy as part of a self-care ritual, from chai to apple to pumpkin.
No matter what flavor you like best among the wide variety of apple cider and pumpkin spice lattes, curling up with any hot drink offers a range of benefits.
Warm drinks expand our blood vessels and improve our circulation.
They also help us relax by releasing endorphins. A warm mug paired with a relaxing activity like reading, journaling, or coloring, further boosts our endorphins and helps us unwind.
Enjoy the Outdoors to Get Some Fall Self-Care
Exploring nature as part of a self-care routine offers numerous healing qualities. It exposes us to fresh air, gets our blood pumping, and removes us from anxiety-inducing distractions, such as electronics.
Despite brisk temperatures, heading outside to enjoy the fall scenery has been found to boost our mood and calm our minds.
In many places, fall creates colorful and aesthetic landscapes that also heighten serotonin production. Taking regular breaks to explore our autumnal surroundings can help keep us happy, calm, and mentally fortified.
Fall Self-Care: Ground Yourself with Autumnal Scents
We can easily get locked inside our own thoughts, doubts, and anxieties. Finding different ways to ground ourselves can help us to escape that internal turmoil. Fortifying our reconnection to the present and our immediate surroundings helps provide a break from overwhelming thoughts. Intentional grounding, as a part of a self-care routine, often involves appealing to our senses. The most popular sensual forms of grounding include touch, sound, and scent.
Burning an autumnal scented candle helps us to embrace the fall vibes and center ourselves in the present.
There are many fall scents that boost mood and create a cozy ambience.
Common favorite seasonal smells include bergamot, pumpkin spice, frankincense, amber, campfire, and outdoorsy scents such as pine. Choosing a scent that you personally connect with further boosts your mood as it taps into the comforts of old memories.
Practice Fall Self-Care Today
Practicing self-care with some traditional fall aesthetics uses the comforts of familiarity to help us enhance our mental well-being.
Embracing the cozy vibes of fall to calm ourselves and re-center helps ensure we will spend this season mentally strong and centered.
Thank you as always for reading.
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Joan Senio is the founder of KindCompassCoach. Her career includes 20+ years as a health care executive and 15 years (and counting) as a consultant. The common thread through Joan’s professional life has been a commitment to lead, mentor and coach current and future leaders, and women from all walks of life. KindCompassCoach provides information and advice grounded in Joan’s personal experience; however, all articles are backed by research and provide facts and advice from a wide variety of experts. Joan also serves as a thought-leader for KuelLife.com and is a regular contributor to PsychReg and Sixty and Me.
4 Responses
Fab suggestions, Joan. This makes me think of the things I like about autumn – snuggling up with a blanket, cuppa tea or hot chocolate and a good book. Seeing the changing colours, walking in crunchy leaves. I get miserable with the cold because my body struggles and my joints are more painful, but you can wrap up and invest in your self-care regardless. xx
So true, Caz! one of my other favorites is bundling up near an outdoor fire pit or in front of a wood burning fireplace!
Interesting ideas! I will try an autumnal scented candles to improve positive vibes at home.
Thanks for sharing! Our temps dropped so much in the last few days, I’m truly in the mood for the seasonal scents combined with one of my other favorite things – chunky sweaters!