If you’re like us, your 15 precious minutes in the shower may be your only alone time today. Make your shower time your sanctuary. Here are 10 tips for turning your shower time into a daily ritual of self-care and inspiration.

1. Change out your shower head. This is an inexpensive and (relatively) quick and easy upgrade that will completely transform your shower experience. We love wide, round, rainfall-style shower heads. You can grab one from Amazon for less than $30, and search YouTube for installation tips.

2. Pre-shower massage. My yoga teacher, Barbara, put me on to this one. Maybe not every day, but when you have a few extra minutes to devote to your routine, massage oil into your skin from neck to toe before your shower. This is a fantastic ayurvedic self-care routine that puts you in tune with your body and your skin. We like avocado oil spiked with 3-5 drops of essential oil.

3. Ditch the shower gel; opt for a bar soap. Because it is made mostly of water, shower gels usually contain preservatives and synthetic fragrances, are less cleansing than bar soap formulas, and require more packaging. Find a bar of hand-made soap that you love and take heart that you’ve created less waste and avoided synthetics.

4. Meditate. Don’t waste your precious shower time updating your to do list, worrying about what you have not done, or agonizing over work. Use your 15 minutes to clear your mind. This doesn’t have to be fancy mediation. Here’s our favorite easy meditation: Picture the best vacation you ever had, or one happy moment from your childhood when you felt safe and happy. That’s it.

5. Open a window or turn off the lights. If you are lucky enough to have natural light in your bathroom, let a peak of it shine and turn off bright lights. Softened lighting has an immediate and discernable impact on your mood. If you’re handy, install a bathroom light with a dimmer switch. Think spa lighting.

6. Use clean, safe soap. Once you use a block of hand-made, all natural soap, it’s hard to go back to a commercial bar. Breathe in, work up a lather, and treat yourself. My latest favorite is Boater’s Brew. It’s made with skin-loving beer that foams up beautifully, and its studded with spent beer grains from the Kelleys Island Brewery. The grains are a gentle exfoliant, and the scent is warm and citrusy. This is my early summer go-to. And there’s nothing in this soap that should not go onto my body or into our Lake.

7. Cold water rinse. You’ve heard this one before, but it’s worth repeating, especially in the summer.  Finish off your warm shower with a cold water rinse, and your skin and hair will glow in delight.

8. Practice gratitude. Maybe your body isn’t exactly what you dream of, but take a moment to say thanks for your body as it is right now, and set an intention to treat it well today.

9. Shower outside. If you ever get a chance to take an outdoor shower, you should take it. I remember the one behind Aunt Carol’s cottage on Sunset. It was not fancy; it was a necessity. But there is something totally natural, downright spiritual, about having your bare feet on the earth and the sky over your head as you cleanse away the day.

10.  Shower with someone who is in love with you. Explanation unnecessary.