Why Your Next Self-Care Appointment Might Belong in the Middle of the Week:

We tend to treat self-care like something we have to squeeze into whatever time is left.

After work. After errands. After everyone else has been taken care of. Or on an already-packed Saturday when we're trying to accomplish twelve other things at the same time.

But what if your beauty appointment wasn't another item on your to-do list?

What if it was the break in your week?

At Lash Out Extensions, we're big believers in the underrated midweek daytime appointment. Not simply because weekday appointments can be convenient, but because deliberately stepping away from your normal routine can give you something many of us don't get enough of:

Permission to stop for a little while.

Your brain and body need breaks, too

There's actual research behind the importance of taking breaks.

A 2022 systematic review and meta-analysis published in PLOS ONE examined 22 independent study samples involving more than 2,300 participants. Researchers found that even very short breaks during work had statistically significant effects on well-being, including increased vigor and decreased fatigue.

And those were breaks of 10 minutes or less!!!

A lash appointment obviously isn't the same thing as a workplace micro-break, and we don't want to pretend that it is. But the research reinforces a much broader idea that is easy to forget:

Constantly doing isn't necessarily better than occasionally stopping.

Recovery time matters.

There is something different about stopping in the middle of the day

Think about the way most of us normally experience a weekday.

Alarm. Coffee. Kids. Work. Phone calls. Emails. Appointments. Errands. Dinner. Laundry. Repeat.

Now imagine deliberately interrupting that routine.

You put your phone away. You lie back in a comfortable chair. Your eyes are closed. Nobody needs anything from you. You aren't answering an email while simultaneously thinking about what needs to happen next.

For an hour or two, your only job is to be still.

Relaxation is associated with the parasympathetic side of our autonomic nervous system—the processes that bring the body back toward a resting state after stress. Research into relaxation-oriented practices has examined changes such as slower respiration and reduced heart rate as the body moves away from an activated stress response.

We're certainly not suggesting that a lash appointment is medical treatment or therapy.

But creating quiet time in your day can simply feel good—and there is nothing frivolous about making room for that.

Self-care doesn't have to wait until you're exhausted!

There's a funny thing many of us do with self-care.

We wait until we desperately need it.

We wait until we're burned out, overwhelmed, or staring at ourselves in the mirror thinking, I need to do something for me.

Instead, try putting something enjoyable in the middle of your week before you reach that point.

A Wednesday morning appointment can become something to look forward to on Monday.

A Thursday afternoon appointment can create a little breathing room before the weekend begins.

And if you work from home, have a flexible schedule, work an alternative shift, are retired, have children in school, or simply have some control over your weekday schedule, daytime appointments can be a great way to use that flexibility.

Weekday appointments can feel different from weekend appointments.

Weekends aren't necessarily relaxing.

They're often when we cram in grocery shopping, children's activities, cleaning, social plans, appointments, and everything we couldn't accomplish Monday through Friday.

So instead of sacrificing part of an already busy Saturday, consider making your beauty appointment part of your regular weekday routine.

There can also be something luxurious about walking into the salon at 10:00 on a Wednesday morning when the rest of the world feels like it's rushing around.

You're allowed to take two hours for yourself.

And you leave with one less thing to do every morning.

Lash extensions also have a practical side we love.

You get your downtime during the appointment, but the benefit doesn't end when you get out of the chair.

A thoughtfully designed set of extensions can simplify your morning beauty routine. Whether you prefer an extremely natural Classic set, something soft and textured, or a fuller look, you can wake up with lashes that already look finished.

For many clients, that means one less step before work, school drop-off, errands, or wherever the day takes them.

Self-care doesn't always have to mean adding something to your life.

Sometimes it means making the rest of your life a little easier.

Make your appointment your midweek reset.

Maybe we need to stop thinking of weekday appointments as inconvenient times that happen to be available.

For the right person, they may actually be the best appointments of the week.

Come in after school drop-off.

Book during a weekday off.

Use some PTO.

Schedule around your work-from-home day.

Come in before an afternoon shift.

Or decide that taking care of yourself is important enough to put on the calendar.

Lie back.

Close your eyes.

Put your phone away.

Let someone else take care of you for a while.

And when you open your eyes, you happen to have beautiful lashes, too!

That sounds like a pretty good way to spend a Wednesday.

— Lash Out Extensions