Busy people  —  workaholics, parents, social butterflies, insert whatever thing that keeps you busy here  —  are so tired of people telling them to practice ‘self-care.’ If you had the time for these things, you’d probably participate. The pressure to take care of oneself amid of a chaotic schedule simply adds more to an already long ‘to-do’ list; and, quite frankly, it can be exhausting to even think about self-care, despite its importance.

Sometimes self-care can feel selfish, making it a burden. Personally, I find this true in the face of raising children. Before kids, I was all about self-care — gym classes, manicures, dinner with friends, you name it — but after their birth, I ran into the conundrum of feeling like it was more effort than it was worth.

In the past few years — since having my kids — I’ve become creative in how I take care of myself. My time is filled to the brim with important tasks (and, okay, you got me, some aren’t that important, but still…time is limited), and so, over the years, I’ve come up with some ways to de-stress at home without having to schedule anything else into an already busy day.