Some days, I need some comfort. I’m tired, emotionally drained, or just feeling besieged by the world.

On these days, I try to recognize my physical, mental, and emotional state, and I ask myself what I need.

Just noticing is a big step for most of us. We often don’t recognize when we’re feeling drained or a bit battered by life. We just focus on what we think we need to be doing, and we push through. This might feel necessary, but it’s rarely helpful because we’re forcing ourselves to act when we’re depleted or feeling confronted.

So if we notice, we might pause, take a breath or two, and check in with ourselves to ask, “What do I need?”

Sometimes, for me, it’s a little rest. I’ll take a nap. This is a beautiful little comfort I give myself, and I feel much refreshed after.

Today, I would love to advocate for small comforts. A nap is a great example, but there are so many more.

Here are some of my favorite small comforts:

Small comforts are generally risk-free, but there are a few tips that can help you really get the most from them.

While it might seem weird to talk about overdoing comforts, many of us are capable of overindulgence to the point of approaching addiction.

For example, if you enjoy the small comfort of a glass of wine, you can overdo it by feeling like you need to have wine whenever you’re feeling stressed. Then it can move to needing to have five glasses of wine per day.

The same kind of thing can happen with food, watching TV, playing video games, and so on. There’s nothing wrong with any of these—just have them in nice small doses. Use a variety of ways to find comfort when you need it, not just one thing that you become reliant upon.

You can’t always be comfortable. If that’s your goal, you’ll end up shrinking from life. I’m a strong advocate of learning to be with more and more of life, including what’s uncomfortable. That’s how we grow.

That said, we can’t do that all the time. Sometimes we need some nurturing, replenishing, and revitalizing. Sometimes we need comfort. This isn’t an all-or-nothing kind of deal—we can find a balance that’s right for ourselves.

Despite what I said in the first two tips, this article is about small comforts, not “guilty pleasures.” Comforts, when we need them, are healthy and wonderful. See if you can give yourself full permission to savor these small pleasures.

Eating a treat isn’t much of a comfort if you’re distracted by your phone. Let yourself fully savor and find the wonder and deliciousness in small comforts.

I hope you’ll give yourself permission to take care of yourself when you need it. Here’s to the small comforts in life.