The restorative value of a ‘weekend off work’ How a couple of days to yourself, can be a powerful opportunity for a mental & physical reboot.
Last week we took a look at some of the ways in which you can protect your mental & physical health throughout the winter months & in particular why this is so important if you are self-employed & or run your own business.
However, one aspect of self care which is often overlooked, is the seemingly simple act of taking time off from work. Taking time away from work when you run your own business can often feel like an impossibility & there is a tendency for self-employed business owners to never find the ‘off switch’
Sadly, ‘burn ‘out’ has become more & more of a societal turn of phrase, with recognition that working to excess can & does for some result in mental & physical illness, due to the excessive stresses & strains life can put upon us.
Therefore, how on earth can a simple two day break actually be of benefit & can such a short amount of time off, help restore balance?
“I am not ashamed to say that I work to excess. Often times I thrive on the thrum of being constantly on the go. However, with running a successful & busy business with my partner, representing two other businesses with social media, charitable work & running a home; like so very many British workers, I do struggle to find time for myself.
Over the past few months I have begun to notice that I was become more irritable with seemingly small things, feeling excessively tired most of the time, crashing out on the sofa by 9.30pm, taking things to heart all too easily, with my perspective being off & finding it difficult to concentrate. Then I had a particularly tricky week last week & it all came to a head.
Last week was one of those weeks whereby I had arrived at work full of ideas & energy for the week ahead & within about an hour of starting work, issues began to arise, which then went into Tuesday, Weds…you get the idea. The thing is, because I was most likely suffering from burn out & was struggling to get through the week; I didn’t notice all the tell tale signs & did what so many workers do, I ignored them.
My partner was going away for the weekend & I had planned to open up the workshop at the weekend & just keep going. However, realising finally that I needed some time to myself, I made the (what felt like at the time) selfish decision to have a full weekend off. I am beyond glad I made that decision.
Once I had seen my partner off on his adventures, I shut up shop at 4.30pm Friday & headed home.
I bought myself supper, tidied up, fed the cats & settled onto the sofa in a warm house & let out an audible sigh. It had been a long time since I had been able to think “no alarm clock tomorrow” & the relief began from there.
I didn’t decide to meet or catch up with friends, make plans or have time frames for anything & the more I looked forward to that notion, the better I began to feel. So, when I just ‘woke up’ on Saturday morning with no alarm clock squawking in my ear, I lead in bed resting. I checked the time, it was 9.30am. Normally panic would have set in that I was late, I needed to be here, there or everywhere, but no. I leisurely got up, made myself a decent breakfast, played with the cats & thought about what I wanted to do that day.
I knew one thing was that I had to go clothes shopping. To some this may be a weekly delight, but for me clothes shopping is a chore which I limit to perhaps three maybe at a push, four times a year. Therefore, I wrapped up warm & headed into town. Normally I would dash in, grab & dash out. However, with no agenda, no one else to be concerned about, I took my time.
Once the winter clothes had been purchased, I headed home as the seasonal time of year meant it was practically dark by 5pm. Saturday evening, I spent time painting my nails, again a seemingly simple thing for many, but one I normally struggle to find time for. I had the time & I enjoyed the moment.
On Sunday, I slept in again. I headed off to an Eco-swap Craft Fair, chatted to some like minded folks, headed home, did some creative painting them set about making a full roast dinner.
To some reading this it may seem banal, boring or even commonplace, but for me the moments I took to savour these seemingly simple activities, enabled me to reconnect to them, to reconnect to myself.
Finding the time to find some time really did have a restorative affect on me & by Sunday evening I felt calm, I felt like my perspective was intact once more & I was ready to face the following week refreshed & restored. I am aware that some peoples stress levels are astronomically higher than mine & that maybe a weekend would not be enough to restore them.
However, the point I am trying to make is that just at the moment I was literally on my knees with exhaustion; I made a decision to stop, to breathe, to have time for me & it enabled me to gain perspective & to gather my thoughts. The most important thing I learnt from my simple weekend off was that it’s not selfish to have time for yourself, it’s self- preservation.” Katy-Jane
Written by Katy-Jane for & on behalf of Virtually Smart Ltd
