The Ultimate Self Care Gift Guide for Your Holiday Season

PUBLISHED Dec 3rd, 2020 & UPDATED ON Feb 6th, 2023

It’s that time of the year again and with everything that has happened in 2021, we definitely recommend gifting some things that bring comfort and happiness to your friends and fam. Look no further! We have an entire gift guide of mental health-related ideas that are perfect to give this Holiday season. What’s cooler than taking care of your mental wellbeing? Helping your friends do it too!

1. Weighted Blankets

If you’ve never tried a weighted blanket, you might be wondering what it even does! Well, weighted blankets are perfect for people with anxiety. Why? The extra weight puts the body’s autonomic nervous system at rest and can decrease a rapid heartbeat and slow breathing. It feels like a nice full body hug! We’re swooning over how perfect this mental health gift would be for our loved ones.

Argstar Sherpa Fleece Blanket

Ok but like, weighted blankets are a GAME CHANGER! It’s sooooo relaxing to have the weight of something on top of you. It feels like a nice heavy hug! Weighted blankets are designed to help reduce anxiety by providing pressure to the body. It works wonders honestly, and is such an amazing way to reduce stress! Take a look at the Argstar Sherpa Fleece blanket.

Bearaby

Sooo this Bearaby weighted comforter is the most fashionable one everrrrr. Anddd it’s not just weighted comforters Bearaby specializes in! This cozy velvet blanket is weighted AND stylish. It’s so pretty that it could live on your couch forever and ever! In fact, you’d probably get a compliment or two on your STUNNING knitted blanket. They even have a kids version!

Cottonblue

If your friends and fam want to spend every day after Christmas falling asleep and feeling like they’ve been tucked in, this is the perfect gift for them! This fuzzy Cottonblue blanket provides the best of both worlds with endless softness AND extra weight!

2. Candles

Our self care gift guide wouldn’t be complete without candles! This may or may not surprise you, but candles actually have an effect on your mental health – especially scented candles! The smell of candles activates something called our limbic system. It’s part of the brain that houses emotions and memories. When we smell these lovely, lovely candles, hormones like serotonin and dopamine are released and we feel happy and relaxedddd.

Bearhug Naturals

The founder Bearhug Naturals has perfected the art of connection! These Bearhug Naturals candles were made to help let your loved ones know that even though you might be far apart this holiday season, you’re still thinking of them and loving them as much as ever! Plus, they’re sooooo lovely and cozy.

SOJA & CO

If you want to go the extra mile candle-wise, this is the perfect one for you! With soy wax and amazing scents, this lovely Soja & Co candle is the ultimate gift to help set the calming mood. When the perfect candle is lit and the vibes change, you can’t help but to take a moment and relax.

Brooklyn Candle Studio

These candles from Brooklyn Candle Studio are soooo gorgeous! They smell amazing and are guaranteed to bring a little bit of relaxation to whoever lights it. These candles are hand poured, phthalate free, vegan, petroleum free, and cruelty free. It doesn’t get better than that!

Cactus Candles

Do you have a plant love in your life who would love these? These adorable succulent tea lights are perfect for literally anyone who has a love for leaves!

3. Weighted Sleep Masks

This is kiiiind of the same as the weighted blanket, but not totally (because it’s just on your eyes, duh!). But we love a good weighted sleep mask because they are proven to help you fall asleep faster and make you sleep for longer. They also block out any annoying light that might be shining in through your window, so you can sleep the whole night (or day) away!

Lunya

The most fashionable weighted eye mask from Lunya that you ever did see (or not see because you’ll be wearing it). It’s made of super high-quality materials (think washable silk) and will be your new favourite thing to wear to bed and nap time. Oh ya, you can give it as a gift too!

Sivio Cooling Weighted Eye Mask

People don’t talk about this enough! Weighted sleep masks are the bombbbbb! They darken everything and make you fall asleep so fast. Even the most insomniac of insomniacs will love this!

EVQ

Imagine soft velvet covering your eyes and a slight pressure against your eyelids to block out light and help you fall asleep. Ok, now stop imagining and buy this EVQ eye mask for your friend or family! That’s what it feels like!

Weighted Lavender Eye Pillow

Ok so this eye pillow is a bit different than the eye masks, but we loved that it had a scent portion to it! This is perfect for people who get migraines and just want another calming element to their sleep routine!

4. Books

If you have a bookworm in your life, novels and books are the perfect present! They’re also great for your mental health! Reading improves your mood by reducing stress and promoting relaxation by engaging the mind and imagination. When you read, your brain is focused on a single task, so you feel more and more relaxed and at ease as you scan the pages. While we’ve provided links to purchase these books, we 10/10 recommend shopping at your local bookstore whenever possible!

Do Nothing

No, this isn’t just a suggestion to do nothing (although that does sound like a relaxing holiday). It’s actually a book (and audiobook!) by Celeste Headlee that teaches us to stop celebrating toxic burnout culture and the idea that overworking yourself is the only way to go. Hopefully this encourages you and your gift-receiver to slow down and look after your mental health!

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck

Not to be dramatic, but this is one of those books that defines a generation! It breaks down the idea of being positive all the time and how that’s not even a little bit realistic. Gotta love some toxic positivity *eye roll.* This is the perfect read for someone who feels like they aren’t allowed to feel their emotions. This might actually help them break it all down and become a happier person!

Untamed

Yep, this book is on our shelves and our team of writers have fallen in loooooove with Glennon Doyle! This book is all about finding your own inner power and liberating yourself in all aspects of your life. It’s the perfect embodiment of what it means to be a woman in modern society.

5. Journals

WE LOVE JOURNALING! Journaling helps you process what you’re thinking and feeling by organizing it on a piece of paper. Sometimes, our stresses don’t seem so bad when we can see them written out in front of us. You can then walk yourself through how you’re feeling and understand your emotions even better!

Gratitude Journal

If you know us, you know that we love a good gratitude journal! This one is a great way to get yourself or the people in your life thinking about what they’re grateful for each and every day. Super cute, right? One for you, and one for them!

Mindful As Fuck

Ok this is a journal after our own heart. If you like a little bit of humour and a ton of crass words, this is the perfect journal for you. We love when mental health and humour can combine together to create something funny AND helpful!

One Day At A Time Guided Journal

This one is one of our favourites because it reminds us to be mindful, check in with ourselves and take a step back from all the mental clutter. It helps us stay mindful and organized while also making sure that we’re putting self care on the top of our list this holiday season!

6. Blanket Hoodies

Sometimes, when you are hella depressed and anxious, the idea of putting on real clothing can seem like a massive task! These blanket hoodies are perfect if you just don’t have the energy to wear pants.

The Comfy

Ummm we will be buying one for ourselves and literally everyone else on our Christmas list! This wearable blanket looks so comfy and we can imagine that it feels just like a cloud.

YOUCC

This is another blanket hoodie that looks just as cozy and wonderful as the first. This blanket hoodie is the perfect thing to spend the entire winter season in. Don’t mind us! We’re just going to live in this for a few months.

7. Crafty Embroidery Kits

Ok, keep an open mind! Embroidery is actually relaxing AFFFFF. It’s no longer just for your grandma! We’re making it cool to create cute patterns on fabric again with the help of these embroidery kits. But you might also be wondering, what does this have to do with mental health? Good question, friend! It’s actually a really relaxing task to do because it distracts your mind, doesn’t take a ton of brain power, and you have a product to be proud of at the end of it!

Embroidery Set: Beginner Level

This lovely embroidery set is perfect for beginners! If you aren’t sure of what to get someone this holiday season, this is the perfect gift! Dollars to doughnuts that they don’t have an embroidery kit! And dollars to doughnuts that they don’t have a piece of art like this that they’ve made themselves!

Embroidery Set For The Plant Lovers

Sooooo, we just really liked these patterns to be honest! We loooove plants! We love greenery! And we love succulents! These designs are cute af and make the perfect gift for your friends who already have tons of plants.

Advanced Level Of Craftiness: Thread and Folk

Looking for more contemporary designs for that super chic friend? Take a peek at this wonderful book. You’ll both be SO inspired for your next projects!

8. Colouring Books

Colouring books aren’t just for kids anymore! Mental health professionals recommend colouring for adults because it actually helps promote mindfulness and helps you relax the part of your brain that is afraid. It’s kind of like meditating, but you get to colour fun things instead!

Coffee And Animals

Ok, two of our favourite things: coffee and animals! There are tons of colouring books that are made specifically for adults that are detailed, full of swear words, and fun as fuck! This is just one of the many that we found that we loooove.

Fuck Off, I’m Colouring

This colouring book is basically made up of our vocabulary and is perfect for anyone who has a mouth like a sailor! Who doesn’t want to colour in swear words? How relaxing!

Calm the Fuck Down

Andddddd another one with a ton of swears! Make sure that the kids in your life don’t get a hold of it. That way you’re free to colour in profanities howeverrrrr you want!

9. Wellness Boxes

Sometimes, we all need a little bit of pampering! If you have someone in your life who could use a little extra self care and self love, these boxes are the perfect place to start looking for gifts. They’re chock-full of goodies specifically designed to make the receiver feel 100%! (P.S. that receiver can also be you, friend)

Therabox

If you’ve ever wanted presents from a therapist, this is the box for you! Therabox contains little gifts hand-picked for you by therapists to make you feel at peace. It’s also the perfect present for anyone else who might need a gift from a mental health professional.

Loti Wellness Box

As you know, we HIGHLY recommend self care every single day! So why not gift self care for the holidays too? This box from Loti Wellness is one amazing way to help your loved ones take charge of their wellbeing this winter!

Hygge Book Club

So, if you don’t know what Hygge is, you’re seriously missing out! It’s the Danish practice of finding peace and tranquillity through life’s little things. In this box, they include things that help you find Hygge and practice that little bit of mindfulness with the help of the gifts in the box.

Cure Crate

The experts at Cure Crate have you fill out a survey which will help them curate 4-5 CBD products and put them in the subscription box! We love CBD because it helps calm you down and relax your body in a safe way with no high. So if you know a high-strung person, this might be the gift box for them!

There you have it! We hope that this gave you some self care gift ideas for every person on your list this holiday season. We will definitely be purchasing some (if not all) of these for our loved ones. But before we let you go, please don’t forget to look after yourself too! The holidays can be stressful for a lot of reasons, especially this year, so look after yourself too. You matter!

Happy Holidays! We love you!

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