Selfcare Routines

I recently read a study that confirmed an earlier finding that walking in nature actually has restorative effects on your physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. We’ve known this for decades and our ancestors lived it through the ages. As a profession, we are finally appreciating the need to manage our wellbeing like never before.

It’s so tempting to blame our mental and emotional distress on the profession—the pressure we feel from being overloaded, overwhelmed, stressed and even burned out. But here’s the kicker. It’s not so much the profession, with its seasons, expectations and demands. It’s mostly that we haven’t developed the routines, practices and disciplines that allow us to retain our health in the midst of the seasons.

An Example

For example, under less demanding conditions, your selfcare disciplines aren’t necessary. You live your life and practice your craft and all is well. But when the work demands increase, you don’t have the routines built into your days. You don’t have the resilience you need to power through compression time. There are so many things that you don’t have, and you are unaware of the impact until you need them. It’s too late, and the onslaught of the season can be daunting.

So you power through to the end as best you can and spend the next weeks recovering. Over time, it takes longer and the fun and challenge of your professional career loses it shine. You ask yourself, “Do I really want to do this the rest of my life?” It’s a worthy question and the younger workforce is arriving at a different conclusion than those who have gone before them. They aren’t interested in that kind of life. There are other ways to make a living and they are finding them.

Start Now

Many professionals are in the height of busyness this fall. If you are one, you may be feeling the pain now. It may be a good time to restart some of the practices you know that are helpful to get you through. Like going for a walk. If not an hour in the woods, then 5 minutes every couple of hours, just to get up and refresh yourself. When you get through the season and you have the bandwidth, put together a health regimen that will sustain you throughout the year. Because, in the end, it’s about you, not the profession.