Take the Self-Care Day Challenge! 

This post is sponsored by Bayer. To make sure these products are right for you, always read and follow the label. 

Take the Self-Care Day Challenge! 

It’s time to take your health into your own hands

Self-care is something I talk about a lot. As our lives get busier, prioritizing self-care becomes increasingly important. Many of us think of self-care as practising yoga, a day at the spa or even spending quality time with friends. While these are all great ways to relax, there is much more to it!

The concept of self-care is about empowering individuals, families and communities to practice healthy habits, prevent disease and cope with illness or disability to achieve optimum health. Taking better care of ourselves by utilizing the products available to us not only helps Canadians lead healthier lives, it also alleviates strain on our healthcare system! Making a commitment to practice self-care has so many benefits.

That’s why Bayer, a global health products leader, is working to educate consumers on how Better Self-care for a Better Life can make a difference in the quality of life while improving healthcare sustainability.

Here are a few ways I practice self-care: 

Spending time on the water

Summer is here which means I’m heading out on my paddle board every chance I get. Because I am so fair skinned, and being on the water (or in the water) significantly increases your chance of getting a sunburn, I always use Coppertone Sport Continous Spray or Whipped Sunscreen before heading out, and then carry my Coppertone Sports stick in my fanny pack (yes people, I wear a fanny pack on my paddle board. I’m really that cool), so I can reapply while out if the sun feels especially intense.

And because I often forget about my allergies until I’m in a wooded area pumping up my board, I’ve started carrying a Claritin quick-dissolve tablet in that fanny pack as well, so I can easily take it if I realize I need one, and won’t have to spend the afternoon sneezing and dealing with a runny nose.

Powering down

We all feel the pressure to be online 24/7 in this day and age, but as an influencer, I can really feel pressured to always be present on social media by replying to messages and comments. But it’s important to me that I take purposeful time away from my phone and computer and engage in the real world, which is why especially on the weekends, I try to put my phone away more than I have it out. Taking the time to be with my friends and family without the distraction of the Internet.

Reading

Knowing me is knowing I like to read. And it’s hard to read a book when you are checking Instagram every five minutes, so powering down helps me to do this but reading is another way I practise self-care. I love reading in the summer when it feels too hot to move, and reading in the winter when it’s too cold to move, and reading every time in between because – well, I like reading.

And to take that one step further, I like to utilize the library whenever I can because it allows me to enjoy books (and movies and magazine!) without an additional cost (except for the odd overdue book fee) so this one is good for the body and the bank account too!

Going on Adventures

This last “out of the box” form of self-care comes in the form of adventuring. I can’t tell you the last time I had a spa day (ok I can – it was in 2006 and it was an anniversary present from my husband), but if you asked me the last adventure I went on, I could tell you it was only days ago. Adventures are fun and good for the soul because they often take me to a place where there is no (or very poor) cellular service (so I’m unplugging), often involve a paddle board, a waterfall, or another type of water-based activity, and always include either my husband or my friends.

Especially in the summer, it’s rare for a week to go by without me going on some sort of adventure. So much so that one-day last year my cousin saw my friends and I getting in the car on a Saturday morning and she later told me she waited all day to find out what fun things we were out doing! You can be sure on those days my bag is packed with more Coppertone, Aleeve (in case the adventure gets too exciting, haha), and Muskol because this girl hates bug bites and is terrified of ticks.

So you can see that for me, self-care is as much about reconnecting with nature, my friends and family, and spending time in the moment (not on my phone) as it is spa days and yoga classes – which clearly, I obviously support too! 😉

In support of International Self-Care Day on July 24th, I challenge you to share your self-care practices with me. To help get you started, Bayer has created a self-care calendar with one tip for each day of the month download the calendar by clicking here.

Giveaway

I will also be giving away ten $15 Amazon gift cards so you can purchase your favourite self-care products! In celebration of Self-Care Day, Bayer is running a Buy 3 for $10 promotion through Amazon.ca on most of their brands starting July 23rd so you can head there now to start thinking about what you’ll buy if you win!

To enter, all you have to do is share how you practice self-care on Twitter or Instagram, tag @suziconfesses and use the hashtags #SelfCareDay and #SelfCareWithSuzi for your chance to win! 

Giveaway will end at 12:01am ET on Tuesday, July 24th, 2018.

Eligibility: Giveaway is only open to residents of Canada, excluding Quebec. Twitter/Instagram profile must be public in order for me to verify your entry.

So, how do you practice self-care? 

This post is sponsored by Bayer. To make sure these products are right for you, always read and follow the label.