Feb 21, 2024
Need a break? Take one. Need several? Do it. Don't feel like you can afford it? You can. Don't feel like you deserve it? You DEFINITELY do!
Everyone I talk to seems to be feeling the same way - too much to do, not enough time, and no sign of things slowing down. In the opening above, I'm talking to myself above as much as I'm talking to my readers. I find myself more burnt out than usual, more scatterbrained (and that's saying something because I'm just generally scatterbrained...), and also more overwhelmed...
There is so much to get done within a limited amount of time during the work week, in addition to all the responsibilities that we have at home as parents.
Early In 2023, after a similar amount of overwhelm (but perhaps a little less scatterbrained-ness :)), I decided to take a weekly "Mom's Night Off." It's on my husband's calendar as well, and he knows Thursday evenings are for me to do what I want with my time. Sometimes, I get a massage, sometimes I meet friends, and other times, I decide to just stay home with the hubby and kids. When the weeks get crazy with work, ballet mom duties, and general household responsibilities, I have the same night every week to look forward to for a block of me-time - even if it's just an hour - to do something that feels good, relaxing, or energizing. So I give myself a break.
These days, however, even the one night to take my mind off "adulting" doesn't seem to be enough. I generally manage my time well, but 'm feeling a lot of pressure, on personal and professional fronts, which seems to be making me less sharp.
Today, I'm sharing with you a few "intentions" for the upcoming weeks to reduce this sense of overwhelm...
1) Increase my social time - While I'm more on the "introvert" side of the Extrovert-Introvert spectrum, I do get a lot of energy from spending time with people I care about. I tend to spend more time with family than friends as a general rule. I'm going to make a deliberate attempt to spend more time with friends.
2) Spend more time in nature - Luckily, living in Texas means I'm sitting at a park writing this in February, and there's a bit of green grass even if the trees are bare. I tend to complain about the Texas heat in the summer, which doesn't stop me from walking in the mornings, but perhaps between February through May, I'll make more of an effort to take the kids to the park In the evenings instead of watching TV.
3) Add screen breaks to my calendar - If your work calendar is anything like mine, it's chock full with back-to-back meetings all day long, every weekday. Most of those meetings involve a screen-share of some sort, and I think the context switching and keeping eyes trained on the screen is causing some of that fatigue. I'm going to add a few screen breaks to my calendar.
Did I just give myself 3 MORE things to do? Haha. :D Well, if you don't act, then you don't change, right? So these are things I can commit to do to change my situation.
What are you planning to differently to create positive change in your life?