Working with Wellness
Eager for Mondays to roll around, the beginning of the week meant fun and excitement to us all as children. Fast forward a few more years, does the word Monday make you flinch or are you still up for the challenges that accompany the start of a workweek? Thousands of people are dedicated to surviving their weekly journeys from Monday to Friday and Instagram has millions of posts under #mondayfunday, #tuesdaymotivation, #humpdayvibes, and #throwbackthursday to show for it. Add on #holidaystress and our minds are literally overflowing with hashtags! How can we shake off our #sundaynightblues and gear up for the possibilities that come with a fresh work week? Start by finding your life balance and avoid burnout.
Reality Check
Stress is a beast that roams freely in our lives and at times a good dose of adrenaline, hormones that are released during stressful times, helps us through many tough situations. However, chronic stress harms our health.
Does this sound like you?
Constantly swamped and trying to perfect too many projects at once.
Feeling out of sorts and exhausted
Disengaged, unmotivated, and frustrated
Lack of energy
Stress and burnout are very real challenges and the latter tends to creep up slowly and hits us suddenly like a ton of bricks. Stress happens when we feel overwhelmed by having too much on our plate. Burnout, on the other hand, feels like we are running on empty. Unrelenting stress results in burnout, but the two feelings involved are quite different. Burnout alters neural circuits that cause neurological dysfunction and cognitive problems. Recognizing and understanding your state of mind is a first step in the right direction when trying to find balance and tackling stress. The second step is finding ways to help restore balance.
We’re always on the go at Glo and here are some tips that we have found useful in finding and maintaining balance.
1. Connect with your community
We all recharge in different ways. Introverts may need time alone in order to reset while extroverts recharge through social interactions. Regardless of your personality, all humans need to feel a sense of connection with their community. Reaching out to those close around you can help in many ways. Your partner, family, and friends may not be able to “fix” your problem, but having your voice heard works wonders. Building connections and making friends in your workplace or community can also help relieve stress.
2. Mind and body
Protect yourself and reduce burnout risks by getting enough sleep and decompressing through meditation or breathing exercises. High/low-intensity exercises, including yoga and stretching, also helps in reducing stress. Regardless of your choice, a consistent routine and frequency is key to helping your mind and body stay healthy.
3. Diet
We may tend to gravitate towards treats when stressed as our brains are wired to use more glucose. However, bingeing on unhealthy snacks wrecks havoc on our body in the long run. This is especially problematic if we are experiencing long-term stress. Try avoiding stress eating by consuming complex carbs, healthy fats, and protein every three to four hours to keep the blood sugar levels balanced. Steer clear of processed foods that are low in fibre and high in simple sugars in order to avoid a sugar crash!
December is a special time for all as holiday parties and events kick into full swing. Rejuvenate and empower your body and mind by breathing in deeply and staying on track. Finish off 2019 strong and be ready to embrace the unlimited possibilities of 2020!
Happy holidays from all of us at Glo and we look forward to sharing more tips and ideas with everyone in 2020!