I love to treat myself to a facemask, not that often, maybe monthly, making it something to look forward to. Watching your favourite movie with a facemask and a hot chocolate is a simple but rewarding way to relax and de-stress after a tough week.
"Indulge without feeling guilty"
A guilt free way to enjoy ice cream is the new craze of low-calorie ice creams. While some can be extremely expensive, I find that the Aldi version is almost identical to its competitors, who charge double, or sometimes, triple Aldi's offering. They do cookie dough and salted caramel, and tucking into one of these full tubs is a good way to indulge without feeling guilty.
I love to write even if sometimes I'm not very good at it or not feeling very imaginative. Investing in a notebook that you can keep with you to do creative writing can be a good idea for self-care. This relatively cheap notebook can become personal to you, and in writing down all your emotions and experiences into a creative space you can remove it from your mind to the paper, giving you headspace.
"A great way to get into meditation is through the app Headspace"
Speaking of headspace, a great way to get into meditation is through the app Headspace. It is actually relatively cheap for students to access the app. If you pay Spotify's £5 a month student offer you can use Headspace for Students for free, as it is included. £5 a month to listen to music and get some headspace is some cheap self-care that you can utilise in your own personal way.
If you invest in this offer, crafting playlists on Spotify I find to be quite useful self care. Not only does it take time and effort leaving you feeling rewarded, it is also fulfilling to have something crafted personally to you, that you can utilise whenever you are in need, whatever mood you are in.
"Taking the time to paint your nails is really simple self-care, and so much more fulfilling doing it yourself"
On a more general level of self-care for women, Superdrug is cheaper than boots if you are looking to take care of yourself on a pampering level. They offer student discount on top of offers they already do. Taking the time to paint your nails is really simple self-care, and so much more fulfilling doing it yourself than getting it expensively done at a nail parlour.
Finally it is always a good idea to invest in some good teas and coffee, especially herbal and green teas. There is nothing better than a warm cup when you need to relax. Having a supply and a reusable mug is so much cheaper than buying out every day, and more fulfilling that you can spend the money on other things.
Everyone takes self-care to mean different things, but these are just some things I do to relax and feel rewarded in myself, I hope they are of use to someone who wants to do self-care on a budget!