Letting my guard down!

This past Saturday, I did something rare for me.

I went by feel. I took a nap when I wanted. I zoned out and got my fill of short viral videos on social media. I watched movies and TV shows on Netflix to my hearts content. I listened to music. I listened to the fan in my bedroom spin round and round. I took in the sound of silence. Oh yea, I took a second nap. I even managed to pick up and read a few chapters of the book that I’ve been positioning from one side of my desk to the other. And to think I thought books were just big paper weights!

If I lived closer to the ocean, it’s the kind of day that I would’ve gone to the beach and just kicked back on the sand. If it was the summer, I probably would’ve found a shaded spot, put up a hammock, and fallen asleep listening to the tweeting birds.

I relaxed. I chilled.

Taking a lazy day

I didn’t plan anything. I didn’t worry about a schedule. I left everything to feel.

The urge to be productive hit me throughout the day. It was like an itch on the back of my neck. When I get the productivity urge most days, I usually am quick to respond. “You need something. Right this way. I’ll get right on that.” Oh, I’m familiar with the urge. I need to be productive. It’s just a part of my achiever, perfectionist nature. The itch came more than normal on Saturday. I didn’t listen to it though. I let the feeling wash over me and go straight to voicemail.

“Hello, you have 300 new messages.”

It was a strange day indeed.

Recharging the batteries

We all need days like that. We need them to forget about the stress. We need them to forget about our responsibilities and obligations. We need those days to get our physical, mental, and emotional self back in shape. Oh, there will be days in the not too distant future when I need to get 101 things done by 9 a.m. There will be days where I need to be on the clock and under the microscope. There will be days where I need to be “on” and will need to take care of business.

I’ve had more than my share of crazy, stress-filled days. This day though was about one thing and one thing only: taking care of me.

How do you manage self-care to prevent burnout and illness? How do you spend your self-care time?