the ripcord system

1. Accepting that your body is just that. A body, nothing more nothing less.

That it, seriously. Realizing your body is just a vessel. You are borrowing it, so you have to take good care of it. You have to feed it, and wash it, and exercise it. It’s like dog sitting. Obviously you are allowed to customize it as much as you want, but eventually it will not be yours to keep anymore.

2. Little treats.

Give yourself a little reward for good behavior. Cleaned your room? You are allowed an energy drink. Took a shower? Eat a cookie. Positively reinforce healthy behaviors. (Also energy drinks are bad for you, please use caution)

Hygiene

Ok, I know things like brushing teeth or showering can be hard, especially for us alterhumans. But here are a few things I’ve found helpful.

Showers

Showers are so overstimulating. They’re wet, your hair touches you, you have to look at your skin. It’s just not special yet.

1. I use scent to make showers more bearable.

I love being able to smell good, i think everyone does. And using scents that remind me of my home (things like citrus) adds a level of species affirmation.

2. Playing music distracts from the sound of the water.

I don’t like the sound of the shower. I just don’t like it, it’s loud and all kinds of annoying. So I play music, which I can chirp along to, or just enjoy.

3. Warm water is LITERALLY god

I hate cold water so much, as do a lot of people. Yet we are always advised “take a cold shower it’s a sensory reset”. Which, granted, is true. But so is warm water. So unless you need to use cold water (like to wash your hair) keep it warm to hot, it makes it so much more pleasant.

Oral care

Brushing teeth, wearing retainers, and flossing are all unpleasant, I get that, but they are important for the health of your teeth and to keep your breath from stinking.

1. Toothpaste is everything.

Despite what some people want you to believe, mint is not the only option for brushing your teeth. Kids have all sorts of fun flavors that can make tooth care more appealing.

You can order kids toothpaste in travel sizes to try the flavors, and when you find one you like, you can buy it in a larger package. Kids toothpaste is safe for adults, the only differences other than flavor being lower fluoride content and less abrasiveness. Which can be counteracted by using a more rough toothbrush bristle (medium instead of soft)

2. Softer toothbrushes are easier on the gums.

I personally don’t use a kids toothpaste, therefore don’t need the added abrasion of a rougher toothbrush. Soft bristles are so much nicer and don’t cause gum bleeding.

3. Retainers don’t have to be worn every night.

Once you are out of the stage of having to wear your retainers all the time, you can usually move to wearing them every other night. I personally alternate between not wearing them and wearing them on an every other night basis. (Canine don’t you dare yell at me about this, it’s overstimulating to wear them.)

4. Floss picks are the devil spawn.

I don’t know about yall, but I always use the floss picks too hard, poking my gums with the sharp pick, cutting between my teeth with the floss. So I like to use the old fashioned floss, the stuff you hold in your hands that comes in the little box. It’s so much gentler. I also probably only do it twice a week and when I can feel something stuck in my teeth.

Hair

I know taking care of your hair can be overwhelming. You have to brush it, wash it, style it. It’s a lot.

1. Low maintenance styles.

Depending on your hair type, there are different cuts or protective styles you can wear that make maintenance easier. I cannot give recommendations for styles other than for those of us with naturally straight or wavy hair, as I don’t have even the idea of a curl on my head. But for the most part, shorter styles require less brushing and fewer products.

2. Have a color you like.

I know for me, and many others, your natural hair color can make hair care uninteresting. If you can, try dying it a favorite color. Obviously not everyone can afford it, and it is a privilege to be able to maintain. But if you can get it bleached professionally, you can dye your hair for 20 dollars at home, and you don’t need to rebleach unless you are changing colors, or you’re roots are very grown out. I recommend the brands Pulpriot and Iroiro for long lasting, vibrant colors. Both can be ordered online or bought in store.

Maintaining your space

I get it, cleaning is hard. It’s not fun. Nobody likes doing the dishes, washing the laundry, or vacuuming. But someone has to do it.

Clothes

The things you dress your body in are a reflection of who you are, you deserve clothes that are well taken care of, that make you feel comfortable.

1. Stop throwing them on the floor.

It’s tempting to just toss your shirt on the floor at night, but just putting your clothes in a hamper makes it so much easier when laundry day comes.

2. Detergent comes in so many scents.

You aren’t limited to 🌸baby powder🌸 or 🔥man scent🔥ok? You can go with lavender, peach, orange, coffee, honestly whatever you want.

3. Keep what’s comfortable.

Only wear the clothes that make you feel good in your body, only wear textures you enjoy. Obviously if you have a work uniform that’s harder, but your day to day clothes can and should be what you like. If that’s cotton dresses, amazing! If it’s wool sweaters and jeans, that’s great too.

Cleaning

I get it, being tidy is hard, and in today’s society where you have to work three jobs just to pay the rent, there isn’t always time for household chores.

1. A little bit at a time.

You don’t have to clean your whole house in one day. That’s totally unrealistic. Instead, do one room, or a section of a room every day. You may start with the parts of your house other people see, cleaning your living room Monday, kitchen Tuesday, and dining room Wednesday. Or, if you are only responsible for maintaining your bedroom, because your parents/roommates for one reason or another let you off the hook for the rest of your place, you can clean around your bed Monday, your desk Tuesday, and your door Wednesday, whatever makes you happy.

Or alternatively you could say, one day pick up clothes, the next day pick up trash, the next day pick up anything that belongs on a shelf or in a drawer, etc.

You don’t need to do everything on Saturday, cleaning your entire house/apartment in a few hours is zero fun and you’ll get burnt out.

2. Create a schedule.

As I sort of touched on earlier, you can designate certain things to different days, so that you always have a clean house. For example, I always pick up my clothes on Friday, because Saturday is wash day. I always pick up trash on Wednesday because Thursday is trash day.

3. Music makes it more fun.

It makes you feel less alone, you can chirp along with the song, or you can clean for 2 songs, and relax for one.

Body, mind, and spirit

A huge part of self care is stimulating your mind and body with things, whether that be doing a puzzle, watching a movie, going for a walk, or learning a new language.

Body

Stretching and exercising is how you keep yourself healthy for the rest of your hopefully long life. People in their 80’s don’t have to be couch potatoes who can’t do anything.

1. Light exercise is still exercise.

Don’t you dare let people tell you that because you aren’t running ultra marathons every weekend that you aren’t doing enough. Even a quiet stroll through a safe part of town will keep you healthy. I know walking sucks, and it can be incredibly painful, trust me, my knees scream after 30 minutes. But I’m so much healthier now that I walk a mile every week day. You can also do things like lift light weights, or bike, or yoga. Something that activates your muscles will keep them from withering or getting stiff.

2. Please stretch for the love of the earth.

Yoga, or even just sitting on the floor and reaching for your toes, will help you. I get it, sitting in a quiet room doing yoga is a nightmare, but you don’t have to sit in the quiet or listen to calming music. You can listen to whatever you want. Put on a background show, listen to a podcast, play your favorite rock music. I don’t care. Do what you need to do to make stretching fun.

3. You don’t need a gym membership.

You don’t need fancy equipment to work out, you can look up YouTube videos of how to work out without equipment. Things like crunches, pushups, and sit-ups require nothing but you and your body. You can also buy small weights (5-50 lbs) at Walmart or target. Hell, you can even just lift chairs, or boxes, or with their consent other people. That’s how I got into weightlifting, and now I can lift up to 200 lbs. And, if you really want the gym experience, you can do a free trial, or find a friend with a gym membership to take you as a guest. Also, students can usually get pretty good discounts!

Mind

You don’t need to become a chess grandmaster, or a master puzzler. But learning something new is always good.

1. Watch deep dives.

You can learn so much valuable information from YouTube deep dives. And there are so many about all different topics. If you like learning about politics, that’s a huge market. So are things like childcare, the natural world, history and geography, true crime, and film. Anything you are interested in learning about, you can find on the internet. Always fact check your information, any good YouTuber will site their sources in the description.

2. Learn something new.

I know Duolingo has its controversies with AI, but it’s actually a very useful tool. I personally am learning Finnish and Chess, I know some people use it to learn music theory, there are corses for math and so many other languages. Also, Duo isn’t the only app that will teach you these things, any language you want to learn has at least a few free apps you can use, same with a lot of skills.

3. Play games.

Board games, card games, going outside. These are all things that improve mental sharpness and keep you off that damn phone.

Spirit

Spirit does not mean you need to become religious, or do rituals, or anything of that sort. I’m not talking about spiritually, I’m talking about nurturing you, what inhabits your body. The animal you are, on the deepest, most primal level.

1. Make time for self exploration.

Who are you? What are you? These are fundamental questions you should ask yourself all the time. Obviously you don’t need to worry yourself about these things, and you have your whole life to answer them, and you can change your answers every day.

2. Explore world religions.

You don’t have to practice them, you don’t have to be interested in them, but learning about other people is how we combat hatred.

Ok, those are all my tips.

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