We all know the drill of balancing work and home; taking time out but also keeping on our toes and getting everything crossed off our checklists. Life is not easy, less so when our families expand and our checklists get longer, stress gets extensive and our health takes a dive. So many things can impact our health without us even being aware of it.
Here are a few things to watch out for :
Getting stuck in a rut. Yes, it's easy to do and we know we do it, but did you realise that getting 'stuck' can turn our systems into an acidic mess? Frustration builds up when we feel helpless about the surmounting problems of daily life, which turns our bodies into a highly reactive and anticipatory state. This constant state of anticipation causes spasms within, and leads to acid reflux, fatigue, insomnia, and general digestive issues. What to do? Here's the thing - nothing changes until you change it. Remember that life really does go on without you, and those things you can change, please do. It's easier said than done, but if your health is at stake, you CAN do it.
Not getting enough 'down' time. Having a weekend filled with mom's taxi trips, shopping, running errands, hosting large social events that require planning etc - this is NOT relaxing, and it's certainly not a weekend. We hear often of people who want a weekend after the weekend, a holiday after the holiday. Everyone needs a couple of days off every now and then. The job can wait, but spending time with family cannot, because employees are expendable but when your family has gone, they have gone. So mark off those days on your calendar, even if it's once a week, otherwise stress will be your only playmate.
Spending 24/7 glued to technology. You know it, I know it, but we all do it - spend too much time on phone, computers, tablets, in front of TVs. There isn't even enough space here to write about the harmful effects of 3G, 4G, and now 5G. We have wifi in our homes, we are subjected to mobile data wherever we go. SWITCH IT OFF!! Make a habit of leaving your phone in the kitchen at night, switching off your wifi periodically during the day, and having a day off from technology at LEAST once a week.
Not filling our 'tanks'. By tanks, I mean that reservoir within that everyone relies on to keep them going, whether it be emotional support from family and friends, time with a spouse, alone time with a book or on a hike, some affection from one's children or parents etc. We all need people, even the scariest and most aloof of us all, and relationships with others (on any level) are our way of learning about ourselves, of growing, of maintaining health. Take time out with others, but not in a stressful, let's-host-a-200-strong-party kind of way.
You may be surprised to hear that stress is the number 1 proxy killer disease today, causing more than 60 percent of all illness and disease, but then again, perhaps you won't. It's insidious, silent, stealthy and deadly - don't succumb, take time out to breathe.