The Witch's Book of Self-Care: Magical Ways to Pamper, Soothe, and Care for Your Body and Spirit

It’s also important to remember that progress in any part of your life isn’t always measured by moving visibly closer to a goal.

Essentially, by visualizing a potential situation and lending it energy, you’re fueling it and giving it more power.

clutter left in a space that is supposed to be calming works against the purpose. Even if you don’t notice it consciously, clutter is a stress that impacts you. You can even start accepting it as part of the space if it is there too long, which isn’t what you want at all.

Food also impacts mood. Mood is regulated by hormone production, which takes a hit when you short yourself on food that has adequate nutritional value.

Creative self-care absolutely falls under spiritual self-care because it helps nurture something ineffable.

Women are socialized to care for the people around them by denying or minimizing their own needs. This leads to an erasure of self-worth and a constant putting-off

Surrounding yourself with things that bring you comfort helps you release tension. The idea of an environment that supports and nurtures you is one that magic encourages.

When you’re depressed, pushing yourself to do things can actually be detrimental. If you’d sprained an ankle running, you wouldn’t keep running on it, right? You’d take time to heal first, then start doing physical therapy to strengthen it again, and reintroduce activity little by little. A sprained ankle isn’t a failure; it’s a temporary setback.

♦ Don’t procrastinate. Don’t let all the work fall on the shoulders of “Future You.” That’s an abuse of your own energy and disrespect of your future self.

It’s not about flashiness; it’s about comfort and expression. It’s about creating a special moment, not special in the out-of-the-ordinary sense, but in the recognition that if you pause and allow yourself to acknowledge and connect with that moment, however small, you will realize that every moment can be special just because it’s yours and you’ve