Have you ever felt guilty about having an unproductive week? That’s how I initially felt regarding this week, but in retrospect, I believe it was necessary to take it easy.
To be easier on myself (which is difficult for a self-critical person like me), I had to keep in mind two of my goals for 2015 (which I discussed in my previous post):
- be mindful
- be aware of my need for self-care
I felt ill this week and wanted to sleep most of the days, and therefore, couldn’t complete most of my tasks. However, I needed to listen to my body and its need for rest and recovery, whereas in the past, I’d push myself to go to the gym and stay up late until I completed everything on my to-do list. I also had insightful, yet emotionally-draining group and individual psychotherapy sessions, which resulted in me not wanting to write a blog post due to how much thought and psychological overtones I put into my posts. Yet, this is a pattern that has occurred in the past since I first started blogging in 2010, which resulted in large gaps between posts. I am trying to avoid those large gaps this time around and want to let you all know of the reason I’m late with this weekly posting.
What made me feel better was reading statements such as “it’s okay to not be okay,” which is definitely true, however, society makes you feel as if you have to be running on all cylinders ALL OF THE TIME. Which is fine, as long as you take necessary breaks and don’t wear yourself out. However, we are all human, and I often try to help my patients overcome barriers towards being less judgmental on themselves.
As you can see, I’m trying to take my own advice 🙂