July 15, 2025
Why Self-Care Activities Are Important
Self-care is important. Yes, of course, common sense tells us that too much time devoted to ourselves is selfish, especially when you’re a mother and have very clear priorities other than yourself, but in general, taking some time for yourself isn’t bad. After all, if we neglect ourselves completely we won’t be in the best physical and mental shape to be the best mom we possibly can be.
But if we’re being honest, it can be very difficult to take even just a few moments for yourself as a mother, especially as a new mother with a baby who requires near round-the-clock care. Even with assistance from family and friends, motherhood is all go go go. And the absence of any time for yourself can feel more poignant if you’re operating on a limited budget. What this means is that simple, low-money (or no-money) me-time opportunities are very appealing to mothers of varying financial backgrounds.
But you may wonder what those opportunities are. How can I possibly squeeze me-time into all this organized chaos? While your specific schedule is not something I’m privy to, the activities I’ll be discussing in this post are simple enough to fit in somewhere into your life.
So if you’ve been searching or trying to think up ways to take time for yourself and decompress while still being a mom, then take a look at the list below of three creative but inexpensive me-time ideas for moms. All of them are crafty in nature and center around mentally and/or physically decompressing. Activities that lighten the mental load are, in my opinion, the best self-care activities out there. I’ll be adding up the cost of what I’m promoting and giving you a final price at the end.
1. Journaling
I know, I know, not everyone’s a writer. And that’s okay. But I firmly believe that using your hand to write something down can be therapeutic. Don’t sweat, you don’t have to be Shakespeare. In those wee spare moments, you could write literally anything. You could journal your day, your feelings, the sights and sounds around you. Or, if you’re so inclined, you could write a poem or even a little story or an argumentative essay on why purple is your favorite color.
And I do recommend getting a real life journal and not just typing on a phone or computer. One, because we all need less screen time, and two because the act of writing as a hand-to-paper experience is more rewarding than typing away on a screen. Think of it like a detox. The journal won’t ding with a new email or run out of battery power. It’s just you, a pen or pencil, and a page. Like I said, don’t worry about writing something profound or being grammatically correct. This journal is personal and contains literally whatever you want it to contain.
As far as budgetary constraints go, a simple journal and a pen or pencil doesn’t cost much. While journals can vary greatly in price, this journal I found from Walmart is $4.97. And I’m sure you already have a pen or pencil laying around. To cheapen it even more, you could write on spare pieces of paper you may already have at home.
Before you begin this activity, there’s one piece of advice I have: if you’d like to do this, try to make it habitual. What do I mean by that? While journaling sporadically can still be relaxing, making it a habitual action will increase its power. Think of it like doing yoga every now and again versus doing it every day. Which method will pack more punch? While I don’t want this to become a chore, disciplining yourself by doing this every day (or every other day) can create the habit of relaxation. While more discipline in a schedule that may already be hectic sounds nuts, trust me when I say that humans often thrive more with structure than without it. So try to set a schedule with yourself. You could try 10 minutes of journaling every day between 10am and 10:10am. Or anything that works for you.
So to make my case again, while not everyone is a writer, writing something, anything, will give you the opportunity to release thoughts from your mind rather than keeping them in there. It’s cheaper than therapy and is something solid and real in a world inundated with technology.
2. Exercise
This one could be a little controversial, but this is for sure: Exercise is a powerful form of self-care. Even though taking a jog or lifting weights might sound like punishment, it’s important to remember that not all exercise is hard core. Exercise can be as simple as walking for half an hour on a treadmill or outside. I don’t need to cite the copious resources that state how good exercise is for the body and your overall health. But one fact that must be emphasized is the positive effect it has on your mind. And exercise can be done in short bursts. Even a fifteen minute walk around your neighborhood can make a noticeable difference (and that takes zero dollars and zero cense!).
You’d also be surprised at the free exercise opportunities in your community. Sometimes gyms hold community days (like free indoor cycling day). There might be a run club in your area that’s free to join. I encourage you to search your area, such as looking at a local gym’s website or seeing if there are exercise groups on Facebook. But even if you don’t join anything, try to incorporate some self-care through exercise into your weekly schedule. Once again, as with the journaling, try to make it a habitual action by creating a structure for yourself, like this: I’m going to take a twenty-minute walk around my block once per day.
Remember, your body and mind are connected. Exercise in your body can greatly relieve stress in your mind. Don’t underestimate the power of movement!
3. Brain Games
You’ll have to trust me on this one. While exercising your brain even more than you already are sounds like a bad idea, keeping your brain active on something other than baby really helps with decompressing. Crossword puzzles and search-and-finds may sound childish, but they are effective at exercising your mind. Something like a jigsaw puzzle is a great option because they give you something solid to accomplish little bits of day by day. You don’t have to set aside lots of time for these; they can be worked on in short bursts. Again, I think less screen time is better than more, so I recommend getting physical versions of these, but of course, if you’d prefer to download something on your phone or iPad, I won’t hate you.
Here are some examples of these puzzles and their costs:
- I own a simple word search book that I received as a gift, and it contains over 200 puzzles. The cost labeled on the back is $8.99.
- This sudoku book with over 1000+ puzzles is $7.99.
- This medium-level crossword book with 100 puzzles is $9.99.
- This seek-and-find book is $12.99.
- While jigsaw puzzles vary greatly in quality and intensity, here’s a visually appealing but inexpensive one that won’t take you ten thousand years. It’s $15.99.
Adding it Up
So if you took all my advice, how much money would you spend?
Journal $4.97 + Word search $8.99 + Sudoku $7.99 + Crossword $9.99 + Seek-and-find $12.99 + Jigsaw puzzle $15.99 =$60.92
But this is, of course, depends on if you bought all the recommended selections from the Brain Games section. It also depends on what you did with the Exercise section and if you purchased anything, such as a gym membership or exercise equipment. While the price of all three of these activities can vary greatly, the big takeaway here is that all of them are very inexpensive if you play your cards right. Creative and effective self-care ideas don’t always involve big money.
I want you to remember this: Self-care is still possible even if you’re tired and your bank account is slim!
Stay tuned to South Project’s blog for more self-care ideas.
About the Author Krista Ruffo, born, raised, and still living in Orlando, Florida, began blogging with South Project in February of 2025. She’s a UCF alum with a BA in English and a Certificate in Editing and Publishing. A passionate writer and reader, Krista aspires to work in book publishing in the future. She currently works as a Content Coordinator for a family magazine. In her free time, she enjoys writing poems, taking photos, making art, hiking, and gardening.