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The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Mass Amherst chapter.

With the semester coming to a close, I feel like it’s more important now than ever to remember to take time for yourself to just decompress. However, sometimes it is hard to very purposely take this time for yourself. I wanted to spend some time outlining my idea of a really good, relaxing night to remind myself of how good it feels to take the time to have a self-care night and to inspire others to try and do the same in their own lives! So, here are my three keys to having a perfect self-care night.

A Good Meal & Good Snacks

I feel like one of the most essential parts of a self-care night is the food. I won’t tell you exactly what to order on a night like this, but I would definitely recommend ordering takeout (unless you are feeling particularly inspired to cook). If you have no idea what to order, I will say that a lot of self-care nights for me have started with Chipotle. It’s not too heavy of a meal, but it’s really filling & delicious & easy to get. Another very important part of a self-care night is the snacks. Again, I won’t tell you exactly what to get for snacks, but I would strongly recommend shopping around Trader Joe’s. They have a lot of really fun and really delicious snacks to try and are constantly putting out new products. 

A Good Show or Movie

This is always the main activity of my self-care nights. When I’m alone, I will typically choose to watch a TV show over a movie. I love any type of reality TV and recently I’ve found myself completely hooked on the old Keeping Up With The Kardashians and have been slowly working through it up from the very first episode. Putting something on the TV may seem like an obvious part of any relaxing night, but sometimes I find myself so caught up in school and life that I realize I haven’t watched anything in a while. I also think it’s important to watch something intentionally during a self-care night, as opposed to it just being background noise to whatever else you’re doing.

A Really, Really Good Nighttime Routine

There’s nothing better than going to bed after doing a whole shower and skincare routine. This is probably my favorite part of a self-care night because it just feels so, so satisfying. There has to be a full hair, body, shave everything shower, with all skincare and hair care routine steps following. Make your room super comfy (I try to clean before if I know I want a night like this), and of course make sure you have a huge cup of ice water next to your bed. Not only does doing a good nighttime routine make you feel good before you go to bed, but it also makes you feel good even after you wake up the next morning. 

I hope you’ve all been inspired to take some time for yourself before the semester ends to just relax and reflect on everything you’ve accomplished. Self-care is so important, and you deserve to have a perfect night in. :)

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Brynn Geary

U Mass Amherst '24

Brynn is a senior and a communication and sociology major at UMass Amherst. Aside from writing, Brynn spends most of her time dancing, going to concerts and searching for the perfect iced oat milk latte.