Everyday Luxuries in 2025?!

Accessible essentials for sensitive souls

Do you have a sense of what feels luxurious to you? I’m guessing that as a highly sensitive person (HSP), you probably have a sense of what fits the bill. For me, it’s stepping out of the hamster wheel of life and feeding my senses exactly what they crave.

Are you getting enough of that luxury in your everyday life?

I’m certainly not.

And it’s not just that I’m yearning for the vacation that’s still a couple months away. I long for a break from the end of the school year grind, the slog through current events.

I want—I need—luxury today.

A dear friend of mine recently shared a list of the “real luxuries” in life—things like getting a good night’s sleep, slow mornings, gentle movement, and the ability to express yourself freely. It got me thinking about what real luxuries I experience in my own life.

I would add to my list:

· unscheduled moments where I can follow my mind, heart, and spirit

· creative activity that is unhurried and free from productive expectations

· time outdoors to celebrate my connection with nature

· cozy, comfortable care for my physical self

· deep, leisurely conversations with kindred spirits

· settings and situations that inspire awe and wonder

What are the real luxuries you’re drawn to in your everyday life?

Just thinking about these things gives me a sense that my nervous system is settling down, my mind is quieting, and I am connected to the world in a different way than I usually move through my days.

I’m struck by the extent to which my list of real luxuries overlaps with the entries in my gratitude journal. I am immensely thankful for the luxurious experiences I have. I know how positively they impact my life.

I also know that I don’t do enough to cultivate these luxuries on a regular basis.

Luxuries Need Not Be Scarce

The thing about the real luxuries is that they don’t have to be rarities in my life. Most of them are accessible on a weekly, if not daily, basis. They don’t require exorbitant sums of money, international travel, or a month of vacation (although all of those things could feel luxurious, too).

The real luxuries just require a bit more intention on my part. They are accessible when we decide to create a life that allows them to be accessible.

But how do we do that when reality is not going to stop pressing in on us? How can luxury coexist with the bills, the deadlines, the chores, the people who need us?

The answers aren’t simple or one-size-fits-all. What works at this unique moment in my unique life won’t work forever. What you do won’t look like what I do.

Yet there is a way that the desire for luxury is universal. No matter who I’ve talked to about this so far, we’ve all agreed that we’d like to do more to tend to ourselves in a way that allows for real luxury.

So here are some questions to reflect on, journal about, and discuss with people in your life:

How am I choosing to use my time?

What boundaries do I need to set to make time to engage in the luxuries?

How do my choices reflect my values and create opportunities to enjoy these luxuries?

What mindless scrolling, productivity conditioning, and people pleasing am I willing to forego so that my life has space for what feels luxurious to me every day?

Why should I allow myself luxuries when so many people are suffering?

I think the last question is especially important for us as HSPs. Having a “why” helps sensitive people commit more fully to a course of action, even when there are significant obstacles.

Is Luxury Allowable in 2025?

But I also think that sensitive people are feeling the weight of the world so much right now that we may be ignoring, minimizing, or putting off living in our own lives. We need to figure out what balance of caring for ourselves and taking action in the world is sustainable and congruent with what we value.

There is a lot that I haven’t figured out about how to live in this moment in history while allowing real luxuries in my life. I know how often I slide too far along the continuum of my needs or the needs of the world. I don’t think there’s any such thing as balance, or at least not a balance that we set and forget.

Is Luxury Essential?

One thing that is certain to me: I cannot get through these times without allowing myself the small but impactful luxuries that help me rest, reset my nervous system, and come back ready to do the next important thing in the world.

Luxury is essential for you, too.

Those real luxuries don’t have to be as disruptive or out of reach as we think. We don’t need to be a hermit for a year. We don’t need to win the lottery, quit our jobs, or find the perfect partner.

We just need to tweak our lives to start making more room for the real luxuries.

How to Bring Luxury into Life

I’m starting this week by going back to creating blocks of dedicated time for the activities that otherwise spread out and eat away at my day (here’s looking at you, email and laundry). With my “found” time, I’ll be able to engage in something simple but luxurious.

It may mean that some responses may take longer or that a load of clothes sits in the washer for a couple hours (gratitude for having my own appliances). I may have to speak up to people about my decision to change how I go about my day. All those small costs are worth it to me if it means that I gain back some freedom, expansiveness, and pleasure in my life.

So, what luxuries would you like to build into your everyday life? And what are you willing to do to make that happen? Let me know in the comments. I’m always in awe of the creative ways that sensitive people have of making changes in their lives.

And if you notice that you have too little room for luxuries because you struggle to set limits with people, work, media, and more, you’re in good company with so many other sensitive people. Please consider joining me for my next Soundings Circle where we’ll explore how to set boundaries in ways that protect your time, energy, and emotion—without feeling overwhelmed by guilt, self-doubt, or uncertainty.

We gather for Soundings Circles on the first Wednesday of the month from 7-8 PM Eastern to write, reflect, share, and imagine. Please join me and other sensitive souls on May 7^th. As always, there is no charge and everyone who registers will receive the writing prompts and a recording of our guided imagery after the gathering.

Here’s to creating the real luxuries in your life!