Redefine How We Relax

I already missed my first goal/commitment of posting content every week. 🙈 One week came and went, but I have a good excuse! I logged 78 hours of billable work and I’m exhausted at my core (and I’m still working 12-14 hr days). But it got me thinking about how we, as a society spend out time.

Why is being busy so idealized?

Why is actually relaxing so hard?

We were talking about this at home and I said “how come, even when I’m relaxing I need to have something to do?” And we discussed how stagnancy isn’t relaxing. So often we think about ‘finally sitting down’ and watching tv as a form of relaxing, but even when we get a chance to do that - its not enough anymore. We’re on our phones scrolling, or on our computers writing, etc. — multi-tasking at the same time.

We, as a society, don’t know how to relax and maybe it’s because we equate busyness with our self-worth. Having nothing to do - that’s insane, there is always something to do!

And this is why we’re all running ourselves into the ground. Exhausted, trying to achieve, to what end?

We need to redefine how we relax. We need to change our mindset - that relaxing is doing things you enjoy and not doing nothing. Its hobbies, walks, workouts, cooking - anything that is optional, that you choose to do and makes you feel good—that is relaxing. So often we add these things to TO-DO lists, as things to accomplish and get out the way so we can do more couch sitting and movie watching. But we have it all wrong. We’re all hustling ourselves into anxiety and depression. And we’re not getting the full benefit of the things we actually like.

I know what you’re doing never feels like it’s enough, but taking the time away from work (which is what a lot of us doing more of being stuck at home) is more than just a boundary, it’s self-care at its finest. It’s happiness waiting to be had.

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Also - I’m rewatching The O.C. in the background and I should have spotted/addressed my anxiety back in 2008 when I started. Rewatching episode 2 when Ryan’s mom gets drunk and falls down at Casino Night…my insides are squirmingggg.