Holding Life in Balance

For many of us holding life in balance is a challenging endeavor.  Life moves quickly and there are endless activities and commitments that vie for our time and attention.  Mary Reilly, one of the early pioneers in occupational therapy discussed the need to balance work, rest and play and this has never been more relevant than it is now.  I thought it might be beneficial for all of us to take stock and assess how successful we are at achieving that balance.

The first challenge, at least in my life, is to untangle work, rest and play.  For many of us we bring our work home and sometimes bring home to work.  While searching for work related information on the computer, we become sidetracked and look up something we need for the house or the kids.  Groupon, Living Social and RueLa La send daily emails touting new fashion deals and social options.  Cultural and educational options also appear on our screen and before we know it we are emailing our friends to see if they want to take advantage of one the activities that are enticing us via email.  Conversely, when we are at home on our laptops or iPads, we just as easily get tied up in planning endless activities that keep us on the go.  Some may be more focused than I, and can therefore avoid getting bounced around from one thing to the next.  Scheduling play can become a job in itself.  Perhaps the underlying problem is that our work and play often include our computers and further entangle our lives.

Work demands seem to take up more time than ever. Companies are operating with fewer employers and the employees are picking up the slack and for many of us, we are happy to have a job at all.  We run from work to family answering everyone else’s needs and ignoring our own. It becomes challenging to find time to work out or go out with friends. Our health can deteriorate without us really noticing.  Sound grim?  The solution isn’t that difficult; it just takes some consciousness and commitment.  Here are a few suggestions:

Keep work at work.   If possible, stay a little later or go in a bit earlier.  If that is not possible, allocate a fixed amount of time at home so you don’t neglect the other parts of your life.

Schedule time to exercise.  Declare it.  If you have fixed times to exercise, you won’t let others activities upstage it. It is now believed that to optimize our health, we should exercise for at least ½ hour to one hour, every day. If you don’t have that much time, use the time you have.  

Find something truly restful to do each day and enjoy it.  You can take a walk, listen to music, read a book, play games, or watch a favorite TV show. Don’t end up spending hours watching things that don’t move you or inspire you.  

Watch a limited amount of news.  The 24 hour news cycle is meant to draw you in through continuous news cycles.  It often agitates the viewer and creates an undertone of anxiety.  

Get enough rest.  Sleep hygiene refers to the proper amount of rest, at fairly consistent times.  Develop a simple routine before sleep to prepare for sleep, signaling your body that it is time to shut down.  Avoid violent TV or computer work before going to sleep.  

Unplug from your technology at least once a week. Oh yes, and remember to stop, take a few deep breaths, and smell the flowers.