How French Women Practice Self-Care

There’s been so much talk lately about self-care that I wanted to share what does self-care mean to a French woman as it’s pretty much something we practice from a very young age.

Our self-care approach is a way of living. It’s embedded into our daily routine and is mostly traditions and rituals passed from generation to generation. I’ll never forget my grandmother checking on me when I first started living on my own in college. Her advise to help me deal with stress was to drop everything I was doing and buy myself fresh flowers and fresh bread!

Self-care to a French woman is beyond just taking care of ourselves physically. It’s about doing something for ourselves every day. Even if it’s only for 15 minutes. Taking a break allows us to replenish our soul!

Our approach is very natural. We just don’t go out of our way to spend money on drastic health treatments, intense workout classes or latest healthy cookbook bestseller.

The French lifestyle is of course more conducive to self-care. The pace of life is not as fast and people do take the time to enjoy life. It can be more challenging to adopt a slower lifestyle in America’s everyday hustle and bustle but trust me, you can do it if you consciously make time for yourself!

Here are some of my self-care and self-love tips. It’s really all about the small things that you know deep down will make you happy.

1. Indulge without feeling guilty: wine with lunch, a pastry after work. French women don’t fight cravings so we don’t overindulge as much.
2. Stick to rituals: long baths with candles, home facials on the weekend, stretching every morning, reading a book before bedtime, home manicure.
3. Buy fresh flowers to yourself, don’t wait for your hubby or boyfriend.
4. Treat yourself to a hot drink or good piece of chocolate (Godiva is my favorite).
5. Sit for a few minutes at a Starbucks or local coffee shop and enjoy people-watching.
6. Dance or listen to your favorite tune in the car or at home.
7. Treat yourself to a new hand lotion.
8. Accept your flaws rather than trying to fix them. For me it’s my forehead wrinkles. I would definitely qualify for botox but I accepted them as part of my charm!
9. If you enjoy cooking, try a new recipe. Eat healthy and take the time to savor a seasonal fruit in between meals.
10. Lit up a scented candle in your bedroom while you change, sit on your bed, close your eyes and meditate for 5 minutes, away from your phone. I often do this when I come back from work and it helps me decompress and stay positive for the rest of the day!

What about you? How do you practice self-care? Would love to hear about it!

As always, thanks for reading!

A bientôt ♥

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