Life is already tiring as it is, having to deal with work, family, friends or maybe a pet. How do we allocate the time for them and ourself? Especially now, we seem to be living in a society that glorifies being busy and normalises being overworked, overwhelmed, and burned out. Often, it is easy to get caught up in the mundane routine of life. You would not believe how easy it is to be overly exhausted by our daily duties.
All these are avoidable if we prioritise some self-care, self-love, and self-maintenance. If anyone is feeling tired of life, overworked, or overwhelmed, here are some simple things try your hands on to improve your life, even just a little.
1. Study your calendar and stop comparing
Packed schedules and being busy seems to be the norm in the 21st century. And it’s very unhealthy. Sometimes, it is very difficult to recognise when we are overworking ourselves. Every “free time” must be filled with one activity or another, otherwise, we might feel lazy or underproductive. From a psychological standpoint, is that there is a level of comparison that occurs. We might feel a sense of guilt if our schedules aren’t as occupied as our relatives, friends, colleagues, or even our neighbours.
When you hit this wall, this is the sign that you should stop, take a couple steps back and your body what it needs. Remember, it doesn’t matter what others think of us. Once you get a gasp of that, there will be an immense release for you. Reassess your wants versus your needs. Do some detailing on your calendar.
2. Draw boundaries and learn to say no
As someone once said, “sometimes we have to say no to good things so we can say yes to greater things”. When we find it difficult to say no, our schedule gets filled with things that are not necessarily important. It may be things that are truthfully unimportant, don’t serve us, not mutually beneficial, and things we don’t want to do.
Setting the boundaries is the key to making this work. Liberate yourself from having any sense of guilt for rejecting, instead think of it as instilling self-love. Sometimes people may try to push their luck with your boundaries, in moments like this, be firm and stand your ground. People who got mad about the boundaries you set is generally people who do not respect you and ones that you should keep away.
3. Schedule time to love yourself
Alas, work consumes about 80 percent of our times, most times. It’s no wonder we are overwhelmed, overworked, and on the edge of a mental break down. Have you ever sat down and wonder whether your busy scheduled are serving yourself or chiefly only serving the needs of others? What are you doing to self-care for all four bodies: mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically?
Sure, doing something that you loved is considered self-care and self-love. However, do bear in mind that “do nothing” days are a form of caring for yourself.
If you feel suffocated by the overworking and burn out, have a go with the above. It might just be the chicken soup you need to heal.
