Written by: Jude Bokovoy

Self-care can mean a variety of things to any given person. At its core, self-care is taking time to work on oneself. Whether it’s self improvement, unwinding or picking up the pieces of an emotional week, self-care is always there to help. Here are some things to add to one’s agenda recommended by fellow Western students: 

Activities

• Drinking tea
• Napping
• Reading
• Making an iced coffee
• Doing daily skincare routine
• Working out
• Worship
• Relax while listening to music
• Time with pets
• Paint night 
• Meditation
• Everything showers
• Cleaning room

Products

• Guasha-ing using  “The Ordinary” face oil
• Face masks
• Exfoliating cleanser 
• Glow recipe Watermelon glow Niacinamide dew drops
• Paula’s Choice 2% BHA liquid exfoliant
• Ice roller
• “Aquaphor”
• Truly Black Jelly body serum
• “Good Molecules” Hyaluronic acid serum
• “Good Molecules” Hyperpigmentation serum
• Hydrating under eye masks
• Neutrogena oil free moisturizer
• Fuzzy bow robe headband 

Books

• “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho is about a young Andalusian shepherd who is longing to search the Earth for the most magical treasure anyone has ever discovered. While traveling in Egypt, he finds himself face to face with the alchemist. 
• “All the Light we Cannot See” byAnthony Doerr is set in France during World War II. A blind French girl and German boy spend time together during the travesty. 
• “Love Hypothesis” by Ali Hazelwood introduces two scientists who enter a fake relationship to study love but end up falling for each other, thus altering their experiment. 
• “Things I Never Got Over” by Lucy Score follows a middle aged woman whose life is falling apart after running away from the altar. 
• “It Ends with Us” by Colleen Hoover is about a young woman named Lily who meets a surgeon that appears to be the man of her dreams. 
• “It Starts with Us” by Colleen Hoover shows the main character Lily and her young love Atlas trying to restart their relationship as adults. 
• “Daisy Jones and the Six” by Taylor Jenkins Reid is about the popular (genre) band and their 60’s inexplicable breakup from the lead singer’s point of view.
• “Malibu Rising” by Taylor Jenkins Reid tells the story of a family’s decision of what to take and leave from the people who made them. 
• “The Inheritance Games” by Jennifer Lynn Barnes depicts a teenage girl that mysteriously inherits most of a multi-billionaire’s wealth and property without having any correspondence with the billionaire’s family.
• “You are a Badass” by Jen Sincero guides one through how to live life to the fullest.
• “Archer’s Voice” by Mia Sheridan is about a woman trapped in a horrific memory, but her true love proves to be the key to her own freedom.
• “Atomic Habits” by James Clear guides one through how to change habits and make each day a little bit better. 
• “It Happened One Summer” by Tessa Bailey is about a young woman whose mistakes land her in her hometown in the summer. 
• “Three Women” by Lisa Taddeo is a long term study on three women regarding their relationships, coupling and desires. 
• “Everything I know about Love” by Dolly Alderton is a memoir dedicated to navigating her early twenties.
• “The Charm Offensive” by Alison Cochrun introduces Charles Winslaw after leaving his tech company. Winslaw tries to eradicate his image by becoming a contestant on a bachelor-esque dating show. 

Contact the author at howllifestyle@mail.wou.edu