These 15 simple self care night routine ideas will help you unwind for a restful night's sleep. 
Self care is important to take care of your physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Often, self care is seen as something "extra" or activities you do to treat yourself. However, self care isn't just throwing on a face mask when you feel like it.
Self care shouldn't be seen as a waste of time or money, or something you do only if you have free time. I get it, we're all busy. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't take proper care of yourself to truly relax and reflect on your life.
The following self care night ideas are 15 top ways that will help you unwind and wake up feeling refreshed. All of these routines aren't too ~fancy~, but still work at giving valuable time for yourself to fully relax, reset, and prepare for the next day.
In this post, you'll learn the best self care night routine ideas to build your own bedtime routine you love. Wake up feeling refreshed and ready to start your day by giving yourself time to unwind the night before.
This post is all about easy ideas to make a self care night routine you LOVE.
*Best Bedtime Self Care Routine Ideas *
15 Self Care Night Routine Ideas
1. Unplug From Electronics
Unplugging from your electronic devices is a great nighttime self care idea. This is because first, the blue light from your phone or laptop screen will likely keep you up at night.
Therefore, from a practical sense, unplugging from all electronic devices (or at least switching to “night mode” to reduce blue light exposure) will help you fall asleep.
More importantly, unplugging allows you to escape from distractions online and on social media. Yes, it can be tempting to want to endlessly scroll through your social media feed. However, when was the last time you felt good about scrolling on your Instagram or TikTok for hours on end right before bed?!
Scrolling on your phone, especially before bed, may make you feel the need to compare yourself to others or give you an unrealistic view of another’s life. This constant exposure and comparison will not only make you not feel good, but it will likely keep you up at night.
2. Stay Consistent With A Regular Bedtime
Another self care sleep routine essential is going to bed consistently at the same time each night. If you go to bed early one night and then super late the next night, this will only confuse your body and make you feel exhausted the next morning.
Therefore, put yourself in the best position for tomorrow by going to bed at the same time. Make sure you plan out when to go to bed to get at least 7-8 hours of sleep. This way, you’ll be able to feel well-rested and ready to start your day when you wake up tomorrow.
3. Drink A Warm Beverage
Enjoy your favorite tea or hot cocoa mix as part of your self care night routine. This will allow you to 1) keep hydrated 2) get sleepy 3) indulge your senses with your favorite drink.
There’s nothing like holding a warm cup of tea to make you feel relaxed for a restful night’s sleep.
We LOVE drinking tea (decaf… of course) before bed as a quick and easy way to unwind. Our personal favorite is the Sleepytime Celestial Seasonings Tea. It’s not only healthy for you but is a calming way to drink something warm to get you feeling ready for bed.
4. Take a Bubble Bath
Taking a bubble bath is another way to relax for another calming self care night routine ideas. This is great because you can not only enjoy soaking in your favorite bubble bath (p.s. we LOVE the Honest Bubble Bath in Lavender), but you can multi-task too.
For instance, while soaking in the tub, you can:
- Listen To Your Favorite Podcast.
- Read.
- Journal.
5. Read Something You’re Interested In
The nighttime is the perfect opportunity to read something you are interested in. Whether you enjoy reading sci-fi novels, self-help books, or want to learn something new, reading is the perfect way to unwind.
It’s important you pick a book you know you’ll actually want to read. Otherwise, if you buy a “trendy” book that you know you won’t probably read, it will likely just go in the pile of books in the corner that you’ve been “meaning” to read (lol) but probably never will.
Reading is a great idea to include in your self care night routine because 1) you have less distractions to actually focus on reading 2) it will surely help you feel tired and ready for bed.
Our personal favorite genre of books to read right now are self-help books. We are OBSESSED with 101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think by Brianna Wiest. Soooo if you are looking for a great book to read (& ways to reflect and improve your life), consider giving this book a read!
6. Journal
Journaling is another excellent self care night routine ideas you can easily do. It’s especially great to journal at night to help get all your lingering, ruminating thoughts down on paper. Whether you are stressed about a specific situation, are feeling overwhelmed in your life, or are a chronic overthinker, journaling is a great way to be productive and get those thoughts down on paper.
We are OBSESSED with journaling because there are so many ways to journal. You can choose to free write in a plain notebook and again write down everything that’s on your mind. Or, if you don’t have anything in particular stressing you out, you can still write down what you did that day.
Journaling what you did each day is fun because years down the line, you can look back at old journal entries and see how far you’ve grown as a person!
If you’re unsure what to journal about, consider Google searching journal prompts or finding inspiration on Pinterest.
Also, if you want a more guided journal, we also enjoy using the Five Minute Journal. This journal is especially great for those who don’t have lots of time to write but still want to track some thoughts down on paper. And, the Five Minute Journal provides prompts so you don’t have to waste time worrying about what to write.
7. Use Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy is a natural way to indulge in calming smells that help you unwind and feel more relaxed. This is an effective self care sleep routine idea because it prepares your body and mind to feel sleepy... perfect right before bed.
You can also use your diffuser as you are doing some last-minute things (like prepping for tomorrow) as a calm way to relax your mind finishing up a few tasks before bed.
8. Set Yourself Up For Tomorrow With A To-Do List
Writing down a to-do list the night before is another self care night routine must-do. This is because this allows your mind to write down all the tasks lingering in your mind causing you stress.
If you’re anything like me, sometimes I can get overwhelmed thinking about all the things I need to get done the following day. This stress can keep me up at night because I’m stuck overthinking whether I can get everything I want to get done on time.
However, making a to-do list as part of your self care night ideas ritual will allow you to have a visual of everything you need to do the following day.
Writing these tasks will not only keep you accountable and ease your mind, but it will also give you clear goals to accomplish right away the next day.
9. Lay Your Clothes Out For Tomorrow
This is a quick and simple self care night routine hack that can save you time in the morning. Simply pick the clothes you want to wear tomorrow the night before.
This way when you wake up utterly exhausted the next morning, you won’t waste time deciding what to wear.
This is also a great trick if you like to go to the gym first thing in the morning. This is because by already having your gym clothes laid out, there’s less resistance for you to waste time and energy picking out an outfit.
And, the less energy right when you wake up picking an outfit, the less resistance or reason you have to just jump right back into bed instead of going to the gym.
10. Skin Care
There’s nothing like a good nightly skin care routine. Having a consistent, healthy skin care routine is essential for both day and night.
This is because you don’t want to be going to bed without at the bare minimum taking off all your makeup, washing your face, and applying a moisturizer.
Wake up with your skin feeling clean and refreshed thanks to following a skin care routine that works for your own unique skin type.
11. Face Mask
Along with the similar idea of taking care of your skin, applying a face mask is another fun and easy self care night routine idea.
Not only are you treating your skin, but wearing a face sheet mask is an affordable way to pamper yourself and unwind.
Choose a face sheet mask for your own particular skin needs. For instance, if you are looking to boost your skin’s hydration, choose a sheet mask that specializes in hydration.
Our go-to sheet mask fav is the LAPCOS Pearl Sheet Mask. It smells amazing and leaves our skin feeling nice and hydrated… perfect right before bed to lock in some much need moisture!
12. Nails
Painting your nails is another good way to pamper yourself before bed. Not only does this give you a chance to treat yourself, but it gives you something relaxing to do before bed.
We are OBSESSED with painting our nails with gel as we find it lasts longer and doesn’t chip compared to traditional nail polish. We use the Red Carpet Manicure Gel Polish Kit. It’s super simple to use, has everything you need for a gel manicure, and gives you a quality manicure that lasts about 1-2 weeks.
13. Comfy PJs
Another self care sleep routine is wearing a cute and comfy PJ set before bed. Not only will changing into PJs make you feel extra cozy, but it will signal to your brain that it’s almost time to go to sleep.
14. Yummy Snacks
The last thing you want to do is be up all night because you’re hungry. If you’re anything like me, feeling full helps me fall asleep.
Consider eating a healthy yummy snack before bed. No matter if you eat ice cream, pretzels, or whatever you like, eating a snack before bed is great to feel full for a good night’s sleep.
15. Watch Your Favorite TV Show
Yes… watching TV before bed may not seem like the most productive self care night routine idea. However, we’ve found this is a great way for you to get sleepy for bed.
This is especially true if you’re struggling to fall asleep because you’re an avid overthinker. Consider turning on a TV show you like to get you tired and to distract yourself from any anxious thoughts that may be keeping you up in bed.
How Self Care Benefits You
Self care offers many positive physical, mental, and emotional heath benefits, Rather than seeing self care as an over-indulgence, or something selfish, you are giving yourself time to take proper care of you so you can be the best version of yourself for you and others in your life.
Some benefits of practicing self care include:
- Managing Stress Levels.
- Taking Time To Reflect And Improve Upon Your Life.
- Boost Your Energy.
- Help Improve Relationships In Your Life.
- Increase Self-Esteem And Self Love.
- Reduces The Risk Of Burnout.
- Helps With Sleep.
- ....and the list goes on and on!
Why Self Care Is Important
Self care isn't selfish. In fact, self care gives you the opportunity to exercise self love and compassion that you can then use to lift up others in your life.
We all live busy lives. However, self care doesn't have to be this over-the-top, full day affair filled with expensive trips to a med spa or buying expensive skin care products. Instead, self care can be as simple as taking a moment to jot down your thoughts in your journal. Or, read for 20 minutes on something you're interested in.
Self care, practiced consistently, gives you an outlet to reduce stress, reflect on your own life and improve your self, and overall brings you joy and happiness.
Therefore, you don't just have to be having a bad day to practice self care. Try to use some of the above self care night routine ideas in your own life. It's truly amazing how much more relaxed and in tune to your life and what's important you feel when you intentionally set aside time for yourself 🙂
This post was all about self care night routine ideas.
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