In a world where we constantly juggle way too many responsibilities and obligations, finding a balance between work and rest can be incredibly challenging. The pressures of paying bills, meeting deadlines, and doing the housework and a thousand other roles in between, often forces us to push through, even when our bodies are screaming for a break.
Understanding Your Body's Needs
First and foremost, it's essential to recognise our bodies are not machines. And though that may sound like a cool soundbite for everyone else, it also actually applies to you too. Our bodies have their rhythms and fluctuations and limits. It is a living organism, and you would be wise to treat it as such. Listening to these signals can be incredibly beneficial and incredibly hard and we are often incredibly resistant to the messages – and none of that means you are doing anything wrong. Rather than seeing your body as an obstacle, try thinking of it as a friend who needs regular check-ins. Ignoring what your body is telling you doesn't just delay rest; it can lead to breakdowns in health, energy crashes, and an overall sense of burnout. Weirdly. Just like everything else in life, our actions have consequences, and pretending you’re invincible is not going to get around this.
Breaking Tasks into Manageable Chunks
Whether you're tackling a work proposal, cleaning your house, or managing your inbox, breaking down these overwhelming tasks into smaller, more manageable parts can make a world of difference. This method caters to short attention spans (hello, all of us in overwhelm in the latter stages of Capitalism) and allows for frequent breaks (hello, being a mammal), making it easier to stay focused and productive (hello, stopping work and going and doing, you know, other things in your life).
Time Blocking for People who are Not Robots
Time blocking is a powerful tool for managing your schedule. However, instead of rigidly scheduling your entire week, consider planning your tasks on a Friday. This allows for flexibility throughout the week. If you find yourself with extra energy on a Wednesday afternoon, you can move a task allocated from Friday to that time slot. This approach not only keeps the schedule dynamic but also provides a dopamine reward of being ahead of schedule rather than constantly playing catch-up.
Building Trust with Your Body
Failing to listen to your body erodes the trust between you and the lil super skin suit you are roaming around in. We know this in theory, but most of us pretend that it does not really apply to OUR body. For folk dealing with chronic illnesses or disabilities, building this trust is even more essential. And PSA – if we are lucky enough we are all going to live long enough to have ill health – so this does not exclude you. By planning ahead and making adjustments based on daily energy levels, you can create a more harmonious relationship with your body where it feels more like you are on a team. And even if you do not buy into this theory, you really do not have much to lose by giving it a go with a little gentle curiosity.
Reward and Pleasure as Motivators
Incorporating elements of reward and pleasure into your schedule can really help boost motivation. Recognising and celebrate small victories, like completing a 2-minute task you have spent three days putting off, remembering to take your lunch to work, not brushing off a compliment from a friend – acknowledging your wins is going to give your brain the dopamine it craves. By acknowledging you can do things well and do things for yourself, you shift from constantly feeling behind to feeling a bit more human. It’s not about how much you accomplish but about honouring your body's needs and, crucially, not being a bully to yourself when you don’t.
Adaptive Strategies for Different Life Stages
Life is ever-changing, and like it or not, so are our bodies. Whether you're dealing with temporary illness, long-term health issues, or simply the natural aging process ( that billions are spent every year trying to tell us we can buy our way out of), having adaptable strategies in place can help manage these transitions more smoothly. It goes some way to undermine internalised ableism and allows us space and strategy when we have seasons of needing to adapt more of a caregiving role.
By integrating some of these strategies into your routines, you can learn how to navigate work when your body craves rest and still accomplish the ultimate goal: being kind to yourself along the way. It is easy to forget sometimes, but your body is your lifelong companion, and nurturing your relationship with it will lead you to feel more like you are on a team.
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