Enjoy the 7 Benefits of a Self-Care Bath Routine

Learn how to enjoy a self-care bath routine and experience the wonderful benefits to help you relax after a busy, stressful day at work.

Making time for a self-care bath routine in your day is one of the easiest and enjoyable ways I’ve found to relax. It washes away more than just the dirt from a busy day on the job.

As you would probably be aware, the act of bathing has been around for hundreds of years, including the well-known water therapies that have helped improve many health issues.

However, the at-home bath is often underrated and underestimated for its powerful potential to help support the mind, body, and spirit.

I know having a bath is much more valuable to me than just taking a wash. When I’ve dragged myself home from an extremely busy and stressful week, the time I take plunging into the hot bubbly water is an intentional action I make to help me thrive and raise my vibration as a busy professional.

I pour myself a glass of red, sprinkle in the bath salts and slip deep into the bubbles.

If I’m not feeling too wound up, I play my favourite Spotify list and soak for a good 20 minutes or more, letting the worries of the week melt away. This beautiful restful self-care bath routine soothes my muscles and renews my spirit, so I can enjoy my weekend not thinking about school.

So, I wanted to share with here you why I take a nightly self-care bath and explain the various benefits of including bathing in your day.

Plus, if you’ve ever wondered, ‘How can I make my bath more relaxing?‘ … Keep reading.

Benefits of a self-care bath

There are many documented and scientifically proven benefits for bathing, including things like; improving your heart health, helping you to breathe easier, balancing your hormones, and benefiting your muscles, joints and bones. All great reasons!

But, here’s my own personal favourites and why I think you should make time for a self-care bath routine too.

The 7 awesome benefits of taking a self-care bath

1. Baths help to relax the body

The wonderful properties of the warm bath water help soothe and relax the body and nervous system. In addition, by adding Epsom Salts, some say it helps the tense muscles to release, because of the magnesium contained in the salts. Magnesium in this form is known to be readily absorbed into the skin helping to work its magic and boost the relaxing process.

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2. Bathing is easy to include in a daily self-care ritual

Many teachers often struggle to find time for self-care, but by including a bath into your daily routine, you can achieve many helpful outcomes for your wellbeing from just one activity.

This means that by taking your nightly bath, while freshening up, you’re actually contributing to calming your mind and relaxing the body after a busy school day. The water also helps hydrate and soften the skin. So, all in all, a soak in the tub is an easy way to include a holistic approach to your self-care.

Related Article: 8 Simple Habits of Self-Care for Teachers

Make time for self-care with this Weekly Self-Care Planner. Get it HERE:

3. Bathing helps the body wind down ready for sleep

As I said previously, bathing is a great way to promote relaxation, which we all need to help the body prepare for rest. By adding a nightly bath into your structured bedtime routine, you’ll help improve your sleep and experience the wonderful benefits of more restful sleep. A lovely soak in the tub has done wonders for me and always helps pave the way to dreamy slumber.

4. Bathing helps reduce body aches & pains

The warm relaxing water of a mid-deep bath has proven pain-relief properties.

As the warm water envelops the body it’s known to assist soften tight muscles and soothe away the aches and pains that come from a demanding day or stress on the body.

In addition, if you also add Epsom Salts to the water the soothing benefits are amplified, with the calming properties of magnesium that’s contained in the salts.

5. Bathing is great for stress relief

Taking a regular bath – whether it’s nightly or a few times a week, or just whenever you’re feeling the demands on your body, it’s so beneficial to relieve stress. All the pent-up and wound up feelings often associated with high stress and anxiety, seem to just wash away and make you feel much calmer and help lift your mood too.

Related Article: 15 Relaxation Technique s to Beat Stress!

6. Easy for a detox

Bathing is a great known way to help draw out the toxins in the body. By adding things to the water like; Epsom Salts and Baking Soda, supporters of this method say it helps remove the harmful toxins and balance the body.

If using a bath as a method for detoxification, just remember that when you get out of the water, use your towel to rub the skin surface briskly to wipe off the grime brought out by this detoxing process. This is also assisted by using a loofah to slough off dead skin for a totally invigorating experience.

7. Warming a chilled body

In winter, I love the warming effects of having a heavenly bath. On some really cold nights that we often experience where I live, a nice steaming soak is the only way I’ve found to thaw out from the chill in my bones from being out in the elements – especially the cold Darling Downs winds that whip across the oval on sports days or just the obligatory lunchtime oval duty.

If you want to know the essential ingredients I use to set up your own self-care bath routine, here you go:

Relaxing at-home bath ideas

Essentials needed:

Warm fluffy towel
Bathrobe or comfortable clothes to change into
Epsom salts
Scented candles and matches or lighter
Shower cap and soap
bathmat
razor

The basic how-to of a self-care bath

Free up some uninterrupted time (don’t be in a hurry)
Fill the bath with warm water
While the water is running, get your towel and robe
Have a bathmat ready to step out on when finished
Add approximately 1 half-cup – 1 cup of Epsom salts to the water
Light your fragrant candles, dim the lights and step carefully into the bath – dimming the lights is an important relaxation tip because it helps to calm the senses and slow a busy mind
Stay in the bath to relax for at least 10 – 15 minutes, longer if you need the wind-down
Don’t forget to shave your legs before you get out – you’ll get a great close shave!
When finished, dry yourself thoroughly

Don’t forget to get your FREE Self-Care Planner HERE:

Upgrades to make your bath feel like a DIY Day Spa

Bubble bath or bath oil
Essential oils – e.g. lavender
Glass of wine
Music player and relaxing or energizing playlist (your choice)
Body moisturiser
Loofah
Pumice stone for dry heals
Clay facial masque
Magazine – my favourite is ‘Breathe‘

Additional extras

If you want a more luxurious self-care experience (kike a DIY day spa) add these steps:

when the water is running add your bubbles and bath oil for a deep moisturize
also, add the essential oil at this point – lavender essential oil is great for its relaxation properties. Read here how to use it.
pour a glass of your favourite wine
apply your clay masque to your face
start your music playlist
after soaking for a while, use the pumice stone to rub away the dry skin on your cracked heels
after your bath and when you’re fully dry, thoroughly moisturise your whole body for a pamper (or use a natural oil like sweet almond). Your skin will thank you!

Things to remember:

Don’t make the water too hot as it won’t be comfortable
only fill the bathtub to the half-way point, as the water will overflow when you get into it.
for times throughout the bath submerge yourself up to your neck to soften your tight neck and shoulder muscles

Final words on implementing a self-care bath routine

These 7 awesome benefits have honestly helped me to fully relax after the school busyness and I see this self-care practice as a way to combat the effects of excessive stress and beat teacher burnout.

Using this same bathing process, I hope you can prioritize your own self-care needs to wind down, relax and experience the many wonderful benefits for your mind, body and spirit.

Remember, you’re worth it!

Michelle x

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Enjoy the 7 Benefits of a Self-Care Bath Routine

Benefits of a self-care bath