There is nothing worse than getting to the end of a long week at work and feeling tense. The weekend is supposed to be the time that you get to sit back, relax and enjoy some time without the deadlines and the pressures of the office around you. You’re supposed to be able to choose what to do with your time, after all, you’re not at work anymore and you get a couple of days of downtime to refresh and recharge.
The trouble is that there are many working professionals today who just don’t know how to switch off. At work, they spend time staring at screens and then they go home and log into social media. That may feel like relaxing but staring into a screen just doesn’t cut it when it comes to taking time for yourself. Being exhausted can make us move toward activities that drain us out even more and there are times that we don’t believe we are worthy of a rest. Here’s the thing: you NEED to relax and take some time to just kick back. You cannot possibly be a functioning human being with all your faculties about you if you aren’t taking a moment to pause and give yourself a break. If you don’t believe that you have the time to relax, then check out these five things you could be doing.
- Breathe. Believe it or not, spending some time focusing on your breathing and just relaxing can make a huge difference to your life. Guided online meditation is free and it can give you that time you need in the day to centre yourself. The good news is that you don’t just have to leave it for the weekend and you can fit it in at any time – even on your lunch break!
- Tend To Yourself. Being at work is about fitting in deadlines and you tend to your work to ensure it’s of the best quality. You tend to your home by changing all the sheets and you tend to your family by cooking them a delicious meal. What about you? What are you doing to tend to yourself?
- Journal. Did you know that half the problem with stress is that we bottle it up? Using a journal as an outlet for your feelings can be the difference between letting rip at other people or hurting yourself in some way.
- Stretch. We hold a lot of tension in our muscles but taking ten minutes every morning and evening before bed and after you wake up to stretch the day away can make a massive difference to your day. You could really change your life simply because you’ve taken a moment to loosen up; your perspective changes and you are happier as a person.
- Goals. Having a goal to work toward is far clearer when you write down the triumphs of the day. You need to take a minute to write down exactly what makes you happy and what you’ve achieved. Seeing those achievements on paper can make a massive difference to the way that you feel.
With all that in mind, what has self-care and time for yourself looked like today?
