6 Things To Try In February To Make The Most Out Of The Shortest Month

When January rolls around, everyone talks a big game about their New Year Resolutions, their big goals and changes that they’ve set for that year, which they’ll see through to the end. But some of us just don’t have the follow through or capacity for a year long challenge or lifestyle change. Sometimes we need to focus on the small level, like a week, or even a month, and do our best to start new practices and habits that will help us feel better and live better.

Sometimes making your life better doesn’t mean setting a weight loss challenge; sometimes it just means starting a great new podcast. There are an infinite number of ways to make your month brighter, happier, and easier, and carving out that small time to focus on yourself is the best way to do it. Below we’ve compiled a quick list of things to try in February to change your life – or at least your month – and keep us going after the never ending slog that was January.

Download the A Mood Tracking App

Pacifica is a mood tracking app with about a thousand additional features. It offers daily check ins – which you can do multiple times a day – to record your feelings and thoughts, as well as guided meditations, thought exercises, and places to set goals and challenge yourself. Your daily goals can be as simple as ‘go to work’ or ‘socialize with coworkers’, or you can make them more challenging. The goal of Pacifica is to help people who suffer from depression, anxiety, or stress by giving them a place to record how they feel and find motivation. There’s also a community aspect, where, if you want, you can talk to other people. The best thing about Pacifica is that you can go as in depth as you want with its features, or you can simply use it as a mood tracker. But the small ritual of checking can be helpful – especially if you’re experiencing stress. If it’s not for you, there’s dozens more out there too!

Buy a New Pillow

Waking up with migraines? Can’t move your head and your shoulders feel like you spent the night getting repeated tetanus shots? Might be time to update your pillow situation. You probably remember to wash them (because ew, it smells otherwise), but replacing pillows slips to the backburner, even when they’ve gone pancake flat or feel like bags of rocks. Sleep Advisor has a long list of consumer tested pillows for your research purposes. If these are out of your price range, head to your local Target and start testing them. A fresh pillow could not only help you sleep better, but lower your daily aches and pains.

Take Some Damn Vitamins

It’s cold and flu season, and boy is it a doozy. You need to give your body a fighting chance to get through it by bolstering your immune system. If you don’t want to stock up on Vitamin C, D, Zinc, and Magnesium, get a multivitamin so you can one and done it, and not worry about finding a home for countless pill bottles.

Commit to Going Makeup Free Once a Week

We all love our makeup (perhaps a little too much), but that doesn’t always mean our skin does. Give your skin a rest at least once a week, wash it, moisturize it, and let it breathe. It will help combat dry skin, acne issues, and give your pores a break. That way when you do put makeup on again, you’ll have a much fresher canvas.

Rethink Your Heels

It’s winter time, it’s cold and wet (sometimes slippery) – do you really need to be rocking your super high heels right now? Give your feet a rest, let your toes unclench, and your calves loosen and switch to comfy and cute boots or flats for a bit. It will help get your feet in better condition when sandal season starts!

Make Yourself Learn

There’s not always a ton of time to stop and learn new things during the hecticness of the work week, but gaining new information and stimulating my mind always makes me feel better. You can easily eek out some time during your days to listen to an informational podcast like Stuff You Missed In History Class, or to download a language learning app like Duolingo, which helps you learn or brush up on foreign languages while making it feel like a game.

Photo by Kira auf der Heide on Unsplash