The day after Thanksgiving, I was given a day off from work. Now, I'm used to constantly working all throughout the week while juggling my classes that it severely concerns my friends and family about my sanity. To be given a day off actually confused me. It wasn't that I wasn't grateful for the day off, it's just that, I honestly had no clue what to do. I really didn't. I made the best of it and stayed over at my best friend, Sam's, house for the day. Whenever I'm over there, I'm not allowed to do homework or anything that would stress my brain out anymore than I already have. According to her and everyone else, I apparently work and study too much and don't give time for my self. Although that might be true, the reason is because it's not because I want to be a work-a-holic, it's because I have to, which is not a bad mindset, but without moderation, it's dangerous.
I say dangerous because it over works the mind past it's limit. You pretty much have put yourself into overdrive and have no clue how to stop. You're consistently on edge, anxious, and it's hard to relax. You know how much it sucks not being able to relax because your brain won't shut itself off to let you get some decent shut eye? Not only does a brain in overdrive take away sleep, it puts pressure on your mental health. For people with mental disorders, it's even worse because it's double the effect and it pretty much induces insomnia. Side note: whether you think I have a mental condition or not, I'll leave that up to your discretion.
It took another hour after I got to Sam's house to figure out what I wanted to do. I decided, I was going to take a mental day off. No homework, no work, no stressful people. Just a day to lounge around do nothing but watch tv and get fat. Honestly, I wish there were more opportunities to have mental days off in order to function better and have a rested mind.
Mental days off gives time for the mind to catch up and slow down. You get to catch up on sleep, favorite shows, have a proper meal for once, and just having the time to enjoy the moment without all the extra to stress you out. This becomes your time for you, to not think about the workload and the shenanigans that came along with it. Hell, you can even color, play video games, rot your brain on whatever is on Hulu or Netflix, whatever it maybe. Just keep in mind to take it easy and not drive yourself batshit crazy with the stress and the workload. If it's anything I learned from my one day of confusion, is it's to take the time for yourself and wind down. Losing your sanity over temporary things isn't worth it. The next day is a new day. So take it one step at a time, go with the flow, and take care of yourself.
