Taking a Break for Your Mental Health
Taking a Break:
I thought I'd just share with you something that I’m practicing doing for my own mental health right now.
And that is: Taking Breaks when I NEED them, rather than just when I feel like I’ve “earned or deserve” them.
As I’ve talked about this with many clients now, I’ve learned that it’s actually pretty common that many of our parents have taught us (as kids) to “do all our work first” (chores, homework), BEFORE taking a break (TV, video games etc…).. And so many of us are “pre-programmed” to work hard before earning a break. And society reinforces this idea many times when we are young. (kind of unfortunate, since taking a break is also so important).
So, maybe for “kids”, this is an effective skill to teach as it encourages work to get done before “play” and introduces the concept of responsibility.
But as adults, there are not usually natural “breaks” built into any part of our day or routine unless we have decided to allow that.
Which is a problem since many of us are hard-wired to just work until the work is done (but as adults, the work is oftentimes never “done”- like parenting… dear goodness that’s never “done”, is it?)
And so, I’ve recently been trying to reprogram my own brain around this and try to practice taking breaks.
I’ve been working on it for only about a week now and have already changed my thinking.
I went from thinking:
“I can’t take a break because I’m not done working”, and…
“I don’t have enough time to take a break”, and…
“it will be too hard to go back to work after taking a break”/ “it’s not worth it” mentality…
TO:
“I need to take a break because I’m hungry and my brain is feeling “tired/foggy” (which requires practicing some mindfulness), and…
“A 5 or 10 minute break is not that long and won’t take up too much time…I have time for 5 or 10 minutes for myself”, and…
“I am actually MORE productive and can get more done in a shorter amount of time when I have taken a break.”, and...
“It’s not actually THAT hard to come back to work after taking a break. I just need to practice knowing and learning that I’m only taking a short break and will still need to finish some things up afterwards.
Simply practicing something like “taking a break” (a behavioral and routine based skill) can be an effective and important way to re-shape your thinking and allow for much more balance that includes self care.
Remember that self care is Necessary. It is NOT Selfish.
As a parent I often remind myself that I am BETTER for everyone else (for my kids and family), If I prioritize my own self care also. No one can endlessly give and give.
You cannot pour from an empty cup!
I hope you consider practicing “taking a break” and that it can be as helpful for you as it has been for me!
Sarah A. Robb MSW, LISW-S, LICDC
(Masters Degree in Social Work, Licensed Independent Social Worker-Supervisory Designation, Licensed Independent Chemical Dependency Counselor)
* LGBTQ+ Friendly ALLY.
@SarahRobbLISWS
It is so difficult to crop out of the conditioning we sort of grow up and live under, that weekends should only be restful if the weekdays were productive, or that rest isn't productive and we need to "earn" the "privilege" to take a break when we need/ want to, against something. *-*
Sooo needed to hear this, thanks so much for taking the time to reiterate on such an important topic, Sarah.
Self care isn't selfish, and yes indeed, we cannot and we shouldn't pour from an empty cup, does no one any good.
What does self care look like to you?💛
@SarahRobbLISWS Thank you, Sarah. Much needed reminder that we all need it in our lives often. We usually procrastinate self-care as we feel once "X goal or task will be completed, then I will take self-care." But, I think we need to embrace the thought that self-care is also a goal and task that needed to be completed in order to have a better focus on completing the rest of the goals.
great post and wise words, "you cannot pour from an empty cup" :)
@SarahRobbLISWS
Thank you for this post! I used to think that before I can take a break all work needs to be done 100 % but that is not possible all the time so often I put breaks back and back again which depleted my energy even more. Now I am practising taking a break, actually this weekend from tomorrow Friday til Monday, so a very long weekend. 😊
Thank you so much for those useful and amazing tips and tricks. I strongly believe that a self-care break is a must regardless of what job you are doing. Self-care break not only fuels our energy but also help us prevent burnout.
Much love,
-Angel
@SarahRobbLISWS
@SarahRobbLISWS
Hello, such a lovely post. I have to take breaks as my body demands regardless of what I want to do, because otherwise I get angry and lash out at non understanding people around me. Lashing out only makes it more difficult for me, so I have to manage my emotions before I reach the boiling point. Recently I see I feel extremely guilty if I don't take breaks as soon as my body calls for. So I have to learn to let go sometimes.
Thank you for mentioning parenting is a job without any breaks- I'm really sorry you have to go through this and proud of your hard work. I want to relate- not to belittle your efforts, that studying Computer Science and/or Mathematics is the same for me. If I solve one problem I feel high for a while and then the stress to do even a harder problem comes back after a while. So I have to force myself to take breaks. Like this week I forced myself to paint for two days, but the sad thing is I couldn't go back to my work flow yet. I'll get there eventually.
Thank you for reading this long comment, I just wanted to share a bit about my experiences. Lots of love to you <3
@seashell145
Forgot to add- parenting is most likely more difficult than studying math or cs. Added 'most likely' because I can't be sure, but it feels this way that parenting might be more difficult than studying those subjects.
@SarahRobbLISWS I really loved to read it. I am student and mom of two wonderful kids and I left my breaks still I finish all the work, but when I finally finish, I think, "It was not enough, it is not a big deal" and I postpone my selfcare again. Finally, I am burned, tired, doing my activities with double-effort and an empty feeling.
Thank you for sharing!❤️
@SarahRobbLISWS
wow, this is a great informative community thread, and i agree with all said here, taking breaks in every day routines is a great way to maintain mental and physical wellness!
@SarahRobbLISWS
wow, this is a great informative community thread, and i agree with all said here, taking breaks in every day routines is a great way to maintain mental and physical wellness!
Hi
