35 Ways to Treat Yourself
In one of my favorite magazines, Bella Grace, they asked readers about their favorite ways to spoil themselves. Readers shared everything from delicious iced coffee to used books to organic, locally grown foods to soft, plush bedding to an 8:30 p.m. bedtime to good socks to postage stamps.
Today, I’m sharing other ideas, because these treats—however big or small—help us to feel special. And we don’t have to wait until someone else creates this feeling for us. We can create it on our own. We can give ourselves whatever we need and want and wish for. We can treat ourselves.
Some of the examples below are small treats. Others are bigger and require money. My intention is to give you a range of ideas. Some might work for you. Some might not.
But, again, either way, know that you don’t need to wait for someone to buy you a bouquet of flowers or do anything else for you. Know that you can do this for yourself at any time.
- Wake up early to walk along the beach and watch the sunrise.
- Sit in your favorite cafe, savoring a freshly baked donut and cup of tea.
- Get the hand-made pasta.
- Read for 30 minutes on the couch without ever checking your phone.
- Take half the day off from work and enjoy an afternoon adventure to a nearby city.
- Buy the softest sweats (which don’t have to be pricey. I scored sweatpants and a sweatshirt at the Banana Republic outlet for less than $20).
- Drink chocolate milk and snack on an Oreo or two while reading your favorite kids’ book.
- Have a picnic at the park.
- Buy a new journal and pack of pens.
- Go to the flea market and search for that one rare, cool find.
- Read the paper on Sunday morning.
- Make bread from scratch.
- Get a bouquet of your favorite flowers, and fill small vases (or drinking glasses) with several flowers in every room.
- Make your own face scrub.
- Savor organic dark chocolate.
- Spend a morning messing around with magazines, paint, crayons and glue.
- Buy yourself pink balloons and play with your camera. Just because.
- Have breakfast in bed—at any time.
- Visit a botanical garden.
- Put your headphones on, listening to your favorite soothing music and letting yourself fall asleep.
- Take a hot shower for 10 or 15 minutes longer than you normally would.
- Take a class or lesson you’ve always wanted to take—cooking, photography, dance, scrapbooking, sewing, tennis, golf, jewelry-making.
- Put a few drops of essential oil on your pillow before bed.
- Buy yourself new perfume—or make it yourself.
- Create a writing or creating nook for yourself—something that’s filled with your favorite quotes and images that inspire you. This might include a small desk or just a comfy chair. This is your space to reflect and relax.
- Start a garden—fruits, veggies, plants, flowers, whatever you like.
- Light a few candles, and read a book of poetry.
- Splurge on a 30-minute or hour-long massage. (Look on Groupon or in local magazines for coupons.)
- Hire a housekeeper to deep clean your home once a month.
- Watch videos of how others create (like on this website). This is one of my favorite things to do—to get lost in someone else’s work and process.
- Get some pretty stationary, and handwrite a letter to a loved one.
- Go to an ice cream shop, and order whatever you’re in the mood for—or order whatever you used to get as a child.
- Watch a marathon of your favorite shows or movies—anything from HGTV reruns to Indiana Jones to Castle to Crocodile Dundee.
- Buy or make a refreshing fruit smoothie. Sit out on your back porch or balcony. Do nothing but savor your smoothie and breathe in the fresh air.
- Think of something you haven’t done in a long time, but you’d really like to. Do it today or tomorrow or schedule it in your planner for this week.
Try not to spend your time contemplating whether you really deserve whatever treat it is. Assume you do, and enjoy yourself.
What’s one of your favorite ways to spoil yourself? What’s a small treat that makes you feel special?