SELF CARE at WORK
The politics of any work environment can be a challenge from time to time. Most of it is due to stress in the workplace. The higher the stress, the higher the incidence of stress related behaviours or illnesses.
We work in environments where expectations and rules change at an alarming rate. Technology has apparently brought progress, but at what price? A financial institution in British Columbia requires their employees to take distance education courses at night, after a long day at work – on their own time. Some of these employees, having been with the company for decades, are now in their late 50’s, but are expected to add to their day's work and to their stress level. They are required to take several of these courses in the next four years, despite the fact that the courses may not have anything to do with the job they are currently doing. If they don’t take the courses, which could take up to four months to complete, they could lose their jobs. It boggles the mind.
Have you looked for work recently? Even for the lowest paying job the interview process can be quite involved. At a well known coffee chain they do two or even three interviews with one person. For some bizarre reason resume formats keep changing and there are people with four-year degrees, hired by the Government teaching the most basic skill of resume writing. We have things that used to be straight forward and we have made them complicated.
Another phenomenon is occurring. People are so geared to working alone at their computers, that we are losing the ability to communicate effectively with one another. We are not only working in our own head-space, but in our own physical space as well. I believe the term is "cocooning".
There is a new phrase out there these days. It is called “self care”. We never used to consciously think about this. It just happened naturally as we came home from work. We would visit with our family, maybe play some games with the kids, walk the family dog, take a short nap or read a book. It was called relaxation and it was assumed we could all do this. Now, with computers and televisions we have this isolating technology in our own homes. So, we not only cocoon at work, we come home and continue to do so for the evening as well.
We don’t laugh as much now as we did in the 1950’s. We used to laugh for 18 minutes each day and now we are lucky to squeeze in six minutes of daily joy. In our quest for success and at the expense of our happiness, we have foolishly changed attitudes and become extremely serious in all aspects of our lives. Simply put, we have forgotten how to play and have fun. Despite this, our minds and our bodies are wise beyond our comprehension and this fact is now being proven on a scientific level. If we choose to laugh more and be more joyful, our body’s response is immediate as blood vessels open up, blood pressure drops, pain lessens and we feel better.
Amazingly and quite wonderfully, we are still in control of how we choose to work and to play. Help yourself and make smart choices for your life
Laugh, smile at everyone you come in contact with and inject some play into every day. It will make a huge difference in your quality of life and will help to alleviate the effects of stress. That’s a promise.
Source: amindfulconnection.com- Mindfully Yours
Right? Wrong? I honestly do not know. I know I pushed myself to the
brink of my limits. But when I look back at what I accomplished, what I
was able to give to my parents, their gratitude, what we shared
together, what they saw in me, what I saw in them: I would not change a
thing.
It was worth it.
- See more at: http://beingtrulypresent.com/cocooning-after-a-crisis/#sthash.nsppkWxs.dpuf
Confession time: I am a cocooner. It is my emergency off button, one
that I use when I have given too much and need to pull inward and
disappear for a while.
Cocooning is the act of insulating or hiding oneself from the normal social environment, which may be perceived as distracting, unfriendly, dangerous, or otherwise unwelcome, at least for the present (WhatIs)
Cocoon (verb): Envelop in a protective or comforting way (Google)
Co·coon·ing: Retreat into the seclusion of one’s own home during leisure time, as for privacy or escape (The Free Dictionary)
My friends know this about me. They know that in a crisis, I am the one you want there. I go into overdrive, do a stellar job then unplug from the social world with an unapologetic, “I need to cocoon for a while.”
Let me give an example. Recently my Dad was hospitalized, his cancer suddenly compressing his spine leaving him in a wheelchair. This left my Mom (who has Multiple Sclerosis) in an unsafe situation, her live-in caregiver away on holidays and my Dad unable to be there. I flew home and for two weeks I moved from caregiver to caseworker to professional organizer/labourer (prepping for wheelchair and caregiver suite) and on and on. It was physically and emotionally draining. Each morning I did yoga, each evening I called my husband: all the while knowing I was only scratching the surface at taking care of myself. I consciously chose to keep the pedal down, unsure whether I would be able to get up again if I allowed myself to come down out of crisis mode. I knew I would pay for it later. I knew I would need to do some major cocooning to recover.
Now some might say that I could have (and should have) taken better care of myself during those two weeks: given to myself more and to others less. If I had approached the situation in a more balanced way, I might not have come home exhausted and unable to give another second to anyone. And they may be right. But when I go into crisis-mode, I do not know how to do it any other way. The balance comes afterwards: 100% to the crisis, then unplug, disconnect and give 100% to myself after the crisis is over.
Right? Wrong? I honestly do not know. I know I pushed myself to the
brink of my limits. But when I look back at what I accomplished, what I
was able to give to my parents, their gratitude, what we shared
together, what they saw in me, what I saw in them: I would not change a
thing.
It was worth it.
- See more at: http://beingtrulypresent.com/cocooning-after-a-crisis/#sthash.nsppkWxs.dpuf
The politics of any work environment can be a challenge from time to time. Most of it is due to stress in the workplace. The higher the stress, the higher the incidence of stress related behaviours or illnesses.
We work in environments where expectations and rules change at an alarming rate. Technology has apparently brought progress, but at what price? A financial institution in British Columbia requires their employees to take distance education courses at night, after a long day at work – on their own time. Some of these employees, having been with the company for decades, are now in their late 50’s, but are expected to add to their day's work and to their stress level. They are required to take several of these courses in the next four years, despite the fact that the courses may not have anything to do with the job they are currently doing. If they don’t take the courses, which could take up to four months to complete, they could lose their jobs. It boggles the mind.
Have you looked for work recently? Even for the lowest paying job the interview process can be quite involved. At a well known coffee chain they do two or even three interviews with one person. For some bizarre reason resume formats keep changing and there are people with four-year degrees, hired by the Government teaching the most basic skill of resume writing. We have things that used to be straight forward and we have made them complicated.
Another phenomenon is occurring. People are so geared to working alone at their computers, that we are losing the ability to communicate effectively with one another. We are not only working in our own head-space, but in our own physical space as well. I believe the term is "cocooning".
There is a new phrase out there these days. It is called “self care”. We never used to consciously think about this. It just happened naturally as we came home from work. We would visit with our family, maybe play some games with the kids, walk the family dog, take a short nap or read a book. It was called relaxation and it was assumed we could all do this. Now, with computers and televisions we have this isolating technology in our own homes. So, we not only cocoon at work, we come home and continue to do so for the evening as well.
We don’t laugh as much now as we did in the 1950’s. We used to laugh for 18 minutes each day and now we are lucky to squeeze in six minutes of daily joy. In our quest for success and at the expense of our happiness, we have foolishly changed attitudes and become extremely serious in all aspects of our lives. Simply put, we have forgotten how to play and have fun. Despite this, our minds and our bodies are wise beyond our comprehension and this fact is now being proven on a scientific level. If we choose to laugh more and be more joyful, our body’s response is immediate as blood vessels open up, blood pressure drops, pain lessens and we feel better.
Amazingly and quite wonderfully, we are still in control of how we choose to work and to play. Help yourself and make smart choices for your life
Laugh, smile at everyone you come in contact with and inject some play into every day. It will make a huge difference in your quality of life and will help to alleviate the effects of stress. That’s a promise.
Source: amindfulconnection.com- Mindfully Yours
photo credit: Pezlet via photopin cc
It was worth it.
- See more at: http://beingtrulypresent.com/cocooning-after-a-crisis/#sthash.nsppkWxs.dpuf
Cocooning after a crisis…
photo credit: Br3nda via photopin cc
Cocooning is the act of insulating or hiding oneself from the normal social environment, which may be perceived as distracting, unfriendly, dangerous, or otherwise unwelcome, at least for the present (WhatIs)
Cocoon (verb): Envelop in a protective or comforting way (Google)
Co·coon·ing: Retreat into the seclusion of one’s own home during leisure time, as for privacy or escape (The Free Dictionary)
My friends know this about me. They know that in a crisis, I am the one you want there. I go into overdrive, do a stellar job then unplug from the social world with an unapologetic, “I need to cocoon for a while.”
Let me give an example. Recently my Dad was hospitalized, his cancer suddenly compressing his spine leaving him in a wheelchair. This left my Mom (who has Multiple Sclerosis) in an unsafe situation, her live-in caregiver away on holidays and my Dad unable to be there. I flew home and for two weeks I moved from caregiver to caseworker to professional organizer/labourer (prepping for wheelchair and caregiver suite) and on and on. It was physically and emotionally draining. Each morning I did yoga, each evening I called my husband: all the while knowing I was only scratching the surface at taking care of myself. I consciously chose to keep the pedal down, unsure whether I would be able to get up again if I allowed myself to come down out of crisis mode. I knew I would pay for it later. I knew I would need to do some major cocooning to recover.
Now some might say that I could have (and should have) taken better care of myself during those two weeks: given to myself more and to others less. If I had approached the situation in a more balanced way, I might not have come home exhausted and unable to give another second to anyone. And they may be right. But when I go into crisis-mode, I do not know how to do it any other way. The balance comes afterwards: 100% to the crisis, then unplug, disconnect and give 100% to myself after the crisis is over.
photo credit: Pezlet via photopin cc
It was worth it.
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