Best apps for self-care

A lot of people think about self-care as something to do after they are already feeling overwhelmed, burnt out, stressed out and stretched to the max. 
For me, self-care should be preventive. We HAVE TO take care of ourselves everyday to avoid the stress and burnout, not wait until we are already feeling our worst to try to fix it.
During the pandemic, I spent a lot of time figuring out what preventive measures I needed to take to make sure I was taking care of myself every day. 

Self care became healthy habits and effective routines that helped me avoid that dreadful feeling of burnout... and because, we all need some help, I found great apps to support me on my journey towards a more stress-free life.

Here are my favorite apps!!! I hope they serve you well too... ​​

For meditations: 
​💜 Headspace: This is my ultimate favorite!!! The premium version is free for educators!!!! I LOVE The Wake Up, which I watch every morning while I drink my first cup of coffee. AI also love all their meditations and how flexible they can be. I like to do a 10min meditation, but there have been times were I have only been able to do 5 min, and that's ok. The most important thing is to not skip the practice. There are so many different types of mediations in the app; there is literally something for every need. This is the app I use every morning and it has really made a difference on how I start my day.

💙 Calm: I love their bedtime stories, but they don't provide a lot of stories unless you have the premium version and it's not available to teachers for free anymore. If you can get it, it's pretty great!!! It helps me wind down at nights and I fall sleep right away! Sleep is also self care... we need a goodnight sleep if we want to be productive!

For journaling:
💚 Lifecraft: This app gives you a different prompt everyday and you write for 8 minutes. I like that the prompts are totally random and sometimes I don't think it will get me thinking too hard about myself, but somehow it always does. The timer is integrated and it allows you to record your mood each morning next to the journal entry. You can also have multiple journals - I have one for my morning prompts and one that I use at night for gratitude. I use the premium version so it synchs with iCloud; but I think it's totally worth it and not expensive at all!!!

For developing and tracking habits:
💛 Fabulous: This app is great to help you build habits, but you have to pay for it, and to be honest I would rather keep track of my habits on a monthly calendar where I can see progress throughout the month. It gives good coaching advise, so if you need the extra push, maybe this is for you. I gave it a try and although I won't keep it, I think it might be helpful for some people.

I hope this has been helpful!!! Apps are wonderful tools, but it's important to use them with intention. Everyone has different needs, so I hope you find something that works for you! 

Un abrazo,     
Jimena