Wednesday, September 20, 2023

Being outside helps my mental health!

All of a sudden we talk about mental health with our students quite a bit, but what about our mental health as moms, wives, daughters, sisters, employees, travel agents, concierges, chief entertainment officers, home decorators, and all the other hats we wear?

The sayings “If Mom ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy” and “happy wife, happy life” are usually said in jest, but I really think they are true.

I have done a lot of work on my mental health and attitude in the last few years. I am trying to find my stride this school year with many changes in my teaching schedule, my school schedule, and some changes at home. I am giving myself some time to figure out what works best for me to be my optimum self. When I was younger, I was more rigid and less flexible. I really had a strong opinion about how things should be and if they didn’t work out, I found it hard to re-group. I have improved, but I am still not what I would call a Type B personality!

Here’s what has worked for me:

Quality sleep and a good bedtime are key for me. I do a shower with lavender wash after dinner/before bed (not always washing my hair), I still take one Goli Ashwagandha gummy, I use Laneige lip mask, and I spray my pillow with “It Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray”. I have added a new thing – I now start off in fuzzy socks. I usually take them off when I do my 3:00 a.m. bathroom visit. Come on gals, you know you have one, too!

Doing some prep for the week ahead does wonders for my mental health!

I do some leg work over the weekend to make my week run smoother. This means a grocery trip (if I didn’t already do it at the end of the week), some meal prep, some blog prep – I try to at least start the blog posts for the week if I can, some looking at my agenda for the week to plan meals, etc. I actually enjoy all of this. It doesn’t feel like work to me. If it feels like work to you, add a favorite tv show in the background, a podcast while you work, etc.

I think it’s the slow mornings coupled with being outside and treating myself to a nice candle that help me start my day the right way.

I get outside. This year with my later start I am enjoying about an hour on my patio and it is giving me life! I light a candle, read my devotional, read my blogs, and do a little blog writing.

A pink sunrise that I caught last weekend!

I stay off the work email and do not work after hours if I can help it. Since I am working until about 4:00 now, I just don’t have more time to give away. I arrive at school an hour early and I stay 30-40 minutes late, unless I have a meeting and that is an hour later. I do not get paid for that extra time so why would I give away more time? With that said, I always bring my best (or try to) to my students during the class period, and I use every spare minute to plan lessons, give good feedback, etc.

Delegate – one example at school…we have a copy center. We have lovely students who work there and make the copies for us. My time is better spent doing other things so I delegate all of my copies to them. I have to be a bit more organized and can’t have last minute copies for this to work. I try to bring the copy center cookies a couple of times a year. At home, I tell Tom if I am struggling with something and he takes it off my plate. He does a lot of the Costco runs for me, for example. He runs errands when he is out for lunch, sometimes, too. He handles most of the bill paying, phone calls that have to be made, and things like that.

Don’t stop doing what you love – I have always loved reading and it makes me feel like me to make the time for it.

I read all year round and not just in the summer. I used to only read in the summer and I realized that made me sad. Tv doesn’t make me feel like reading does so I try to read more than I watch tv.

I plan a happy hour with girlfriends every other week or so.

I walk Ernie with Tom before dinner when I can. I try to have dinner done so I can do this. I know Tom really likes it and we have some good conversation time.

I laugh – seriously! I listen to funny podcasts and watch funny shows. And, you can’t be a high school teacher without laughing – you are either laughing with the students are at them – just kidding about the last part!

Take my days off. I strategically used my days last year so that I could combine a doctor appointment with a me day or just have a me day. It took me a long time to realize that the world would not stop spinning if I took days off when needed.

Please keep in mind that there are seasons in life, and this may not be a season when you can do this much – I have been there. I do see lots of young moms struggling and I urge you to find trusted babysitters for a few hours to yourself or a night out with hub and friends. It’s good for you and for your kids! Just meeting another mom to walk kids in the stroller or play on the playground helped my mental health during certain seasons.

So, how’s your mental health?

What are your tips? How do you take care of your mental health?

Amy

16 thoughts on “How’s your Mental Health?”

  1. Since I’m home all week I tend to break up my chores so I just have a little to do each day and then make sure I have plenty of time for stuff I like to do; read, hike, play with my crafting supplies, etc. I definitely find a good night’s sleep and healthy eating to be a huge part of my mental health and yet both are the first to go when I feel stressed.

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  2. I agree attitude is everything. I definitely have to have my quiet morning time and my whole day is off. Sitting on my front porch for a minutes is always good for me, working out, going for a walk, hanging with friends, etc

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  3. I always like my mornings to start the night before, so that means I clean up any last minute messes in the kitchen, I sometimes prep ahead for the next morning, I go upstairs to wash my face, then I read in bed for at least a half hour. I fall asleep super quick each night, and my body wakes me up promptly everyday at 4:50. Today I slept until 5:20, and on days off, I sleep until 6:30. All of that helps! I try to stay on top of my house so that it doesn’t bother me by being dirty or cluttered. I always try to have a gameplan for meals, and I mostly pickup my groceries on Monday or Tuesday. When I’m home, I try to fill my time with things I love: music, a movie or show, or reading. I like to light my candles and it feels good to just sit and put my feet up.

    I loved reading this!

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  6. Those are all great tips but even as I organized as I tried to be, there still weren’t enough hours in the weekend to do everything and have an quality time. So I retired and that has been the biggest boost to my mental health! I am loving my time at home and feel better than I have for years.

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    1. I love this! I am getting to the point where I am feeling more ready than ever to retire. I qualified 2 years ago. I would love to have more balance in my life, but it can’t happen unless I can find a way to retire and then do something part time, perhaps?

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  7. My mental health is much better since I switched from middle school to high school teaching. I did middle school for the last 15 years, and it has become increasingly chaotic and stressful for me. I’m sleeping better with meds and am really enjoying this school year. It was a great change! I also read, and it makes me happy. My goal has been 100 books/year, and I must hit it! I spend less time on social media, and that really helps too. I’m focusing on my attitude and looking at the brighter side of things. I feel things deeply, and for that reason, I tend to avoid the news because it can be very depressing!

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  8. This was a great post! I take a sleeping pill most nights, but I do still have that middle of the night wake up call, but at least I can go back to sleep. I go to counseling every other week, which is helpful for my mental health. I am trying to do better at walking, meal planning and recoginizing the simple, good things around me. I love that you have such great work/home boundaries. That is such an important lesson that few of us do well.

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  9. I loved reading this Amy! I totally agree with taking time off work just to regroup and have me time. I always felt so guilty about this and I would push on even when my body was saying no or I was sick. Yesterday I had a doctors appointment at midday and I took the whole afternoon off from work. Afterwards I strolled (I don’t think I’ve strolled in a long time!) around the supermarket and even thought the supermarket is not the most exciting place. I had the best time! A couple of years ago I would have gone to the doctors in my lunch break and then rushed back to work. I do need to work on getting more sleep though, and get to bed earlier. I just never want to let go of those precious evenings at home!

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    1. Thank you so much! I don’t know if I am doing so well with this, so the post was as much a reminder for me. I felt very balanced last year. Good for you! I do think sometimes grocery delivery or pick up keeps us from strolling/wandering the aisles when that would be more relaxing when we have the time. I know – I enjoy my evenings and push it too late sometimes.

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