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Share your quitting journey

Why Sunday Should Be A Day Of Rest

RoseH
Member
2 5 108
‎07-26-2020 08:01 AM

This is an excerpt from Healthy Living Lab created by Amazon.com

People who work during the week, often try to fill their weekend with the rest of the responsibilities. You get extra workouts in, plan family time and weekend trips, do home improvement, take care of cleaning and chores, and many other things.

While it is good to take advantage of days where your work responsibilities are put on hold, trying to do too much 7 days a week is going to lead to a lot of stress.

 Leave Your Work for the Work Week

If you have a habit of constantly worrying about work whether you are working or not, you are making the stress and overwhelm in your life a lot worse. This is often where burnout comes from, because you are basically working 24/7, whether you are in the office, talking to clients, answering emails, or just can’t stop thinking about work.  The best thing you can do is only focus on work while you are at work.  If you happen to work from home, have a dedicated workspace. This makes it easier to switch your mindset from work to being at home. You know that if you aren’t in your office or at your desk, you should not be focused on your job 

Take a Rest from Everything on Sunday

The best way to find this balance is to have Saturday be your 6th day of work or personal responsibilities for the week, then leave Sunday open for yourself. Sunday should be your day of rest...  no running errands, doing household chores, or working. It is normal to want to take advantage of the weekend to get things done, but schedule them for Saturday.  This doesn’t mean you have to lay around all day, but it is a day where you decide what you want to do with your time. This might be an outing with your family, going shopping, taking a midday nap, baking cookies, or doing crafts at home.

Your Mind and Body Need Rest!

Remember that both your mind and body need proper rest. Even if your idea of resting on Sunday is working on your couch, you are still working.  You should have at least one day or even half a day a week with no work, no chores, and no responsibilities. This is needed for proper self-care, stress relief, and just allowing your mind and body to unwind.

Here are some ideas of things you can do to rest both your mind and body:

Write in a journal or planner. Journaling is a good way to get all those worries and thoughts out of your mind, so that your brain is clear for relaxing and not stressing so much...

Meditate. Meditation is going to relax your body and mind, and help you with your breathing practice...

Go for a walk or hike. Exercise doesn’t have to cause you stress or be something that is uncomfortable. Think of a light form of exercise that is good for your body and mental health...

Spend time with loved ones. It is still okay to be social when you have a day of rest, as long as it is something relaxing that you enjoy. This might be a family game night, or inviting friends over...

Take a hot bath. Baths are wonderful for self-care, and allow you some time to yourself...

Read a book. This is a great way to rest...

Balancing work and rest is paramount to minimizing stress, and having a healthy and happy life.

 

 

5 Comments
About the Author
I was 57 years old and smoking like a chimney in September 2003. I was also having medical problems and upon my doctor’s diagnosis, I knew I had to quit smoking. I was scheduled and admitted to the hospital in October 2003. I had a total hysterectomy and was recuperating, when a nurse found me upset in my room and she told me to try to calm down, and take a deep breath… I could not take a deep breath! In fact, I had to be put on oxygen immediately! I was terrified. A medical specialist was brought in, and that is when I learned I had COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). My x-rays confirmed it, and the direct cause was smoking [since I was 15 years old]. I had double pneumonia as an infant, so my lungs were fragile, even when I was very young… I had to stay an extra week and they pumped steroids and antibiotics in my arm so I could breathe on my own, again. My nose got so sore with those oxygen cannulas in both nostrils. Hindsight is always 20/20. I should have never started smoking. However, peer pressure was awful when I was 15 years old. A few of my classmates dared me to light up and smoke one… I remember that first taste and how I coughed from the smoke. It was awful! But I wanted to “belong”, so I smoked until the addiction took hold of me! Back to the hospital room… I was terrified. I quit. I stayed that way for six whole months. My husband, Ed quit with me. We were doing great and then one day I said to him, “My life feels empty. Do you think we’ve got this quitting thing under control? Do you think we can have just a few a day? Before I could say another word, he was off in the car to buy some cigarettes… We both lit up when he returned, and I felt like my throat and lungs were on fire! I smashed it out and coughed! “I will never do that again!” But an addict’s lies are just that! Before long I was smoking over a pack a day again… The truth is that I had no idea how terrible the “addiction” to the drug Nicotine was. I smoked for another decade or two and each day I would tell myself that I would quit “tomorrow”. Don’t be as naïve’ as I was about this slowly killing addiction! Quit now! I would not be using two inhalers if I would have kept my quit way back then…