You wake up ten minutes after you're supposed to. You stuff breakfast down your throat. You get to work or class. The entire time you are just looking at the clock, waiting for your lunch break. You roll your eyes at the dining hall selections or you stare at the melancholy sandwich that you packed yourself for the day. You wolf it down. You get back to work. You FINALLY get let out. On the way back home, you get stuck in traffic. Your stomach growls because you didn't eat enough earlier. You just want to get home but that idiot who cut you off is in the way. You get home. The kids are loud, the house is a mess, and you just want to watch tv but someone else is using it. You get back to your dorm room, your hall mates won't shut up and you curse them all for being music or art majors who don't study. You take care of your family or you study until the hours fly by and it's already dark outside. You climb into bed and finally feel a temporary peace. You fall asleep only to wake up to experience the hell all over again.
Everyone knows what it feels like to just "survive until the weekend". We all sometimes feel suffocated by everything we have to do, feel like we don't have enough time, and feel just overly exhausted and even depressed. Americans, especially, have felt this problem. It's a part of our culture. We have to work hard, we need to be fast, and we have to be better than the person who's competing for the same job that we want. We have our coffee "on the go", we rush to our class which started two minutes ago, and we feel frazzled. This is also a common issue with Christians in regards to emotional stamina. We are told to "Love God and Love Others". We are constantly warned of the dangers of selfishness and are instructed to be servants, to be last. Sometimes, the result of these lessons make people feel like self-care isn't important, or even worse, that it's wrong.
Whether you're religious or not, I cannot over emphasize how important it is to take care of yourself. In order to be the best that you can be, in order to help others, you have to help yourself, too. It's okay to love yourself and to take care of yourself. A dead doctor can't help any patients. A depressed, exhausted, malnourished person can't do their best.
During this break, I have decided that I'm going to take care of myself. I decided that I'm not going to throw myself into situations that I know will just hurt me. Let me tell you, the results were extraordinary. Obviously, some people have more time than others. However, I encourage you to try doing one or all of the ideas below. It changed my life, and I hope it'll bring you a little more happiness and peace.
1) Go to bed earlier, Netflix will be there tomorrow.
2) Put your phone down for the day, the world won't end without your constant presence.
3) Get out of bed earlier, take your time in the mornings rather than rush.
4) Eat a good breakfast. Take time to make something you want to eat, not just another breakfast granola bar. Don't "skip breakfast because you aren't hungry" trust me.
5)Take time during the day to take care of your spirit. I feel like so many people neglect this. We don't want to seem like dirty hippies or obsessed fundamentalists, but it's so important to invest in your soul. Whatever your religion is, or lack of, spend time being quiet, and relax. Read your bible. Journal. Light candles. Breathe.
6) Whenever you feel depressed or anxious, pray.
7) Drink a ton of water, it's underrated.
8) Write down 3 things you are grateful for.
9) Read books that are positive, that fuel your positive thoughts.
10) Listen to music, play music
11) Go for a run. Start with running without stopping for ten minutes, and then add five minutes whenever you feel like you can. Don't get discouraged if it's a struggle for you. The hardest part about running is the mental aspect: ten minutes of movement, no matter how fast or slow, you can do that.
12) Even if it's the last thing you want to do, socialize with your family. There is so much more going on in their lives than you can ever imagine. If you spend every day with them, you have countless of opportunities to fall in love and be there for them.
13) Try to learn something, it'll make you feel more accomplished in your day.
14) Realize that you don't have to fix everyone. Everyone needs support, but not everyone needs someone to take on all of their burden. If anything, it'll only empty you out and make the situation worse. Be there for them, pray for them, support them, but remind yourself to step back and let them figure it out on their own. People can only change if they WANT to change.
15) Take time from your busy day to just stop, to breathe, to pray, and know it'll all be alright in the end.
