Time to take care of yourself!

With all the normal craziness of the start of a new school year and then adding in a global pandemic, I know things are especially exhausting right now. We have embarked on a new way of planning, teaching, and existing. It's overwhelming, constantly changing, and the unknown of tomorrow causes a lot of anxiety and stress.  There is so much we can't control, so worry about what you can. One thing that often gets pushed to the bottom of the list is taking care of ourselves.  I know we all hear this time and time again but how many of us actually make an effort to take 5 minutes or more for ourselves each day? I am guilty of not doing this regularly but have it as a goal.  

Taking care of yourself doesn't mean taking lots of time every single day for yourself. Every day is different in our demands at work and home. But take some time to focus on you and you alone. 

Here are some ideas:

1. Meditate when you wake up or before you go to bed.  Meditating can take any amount of time you have and is a great way to support your mental health.

2. ASK FOR HELP. At work, if you are stuck, overwhelmed, or have lots of questions ask a colleague, administrator or myself for help. We are all here to support. At home, ask your spouse to do something for you one night to take something off your plate.  Give the kids a new chore that will give you a little extra time. 

3. Go outside during lunch. Disconnect from your technology for those 30 minutes. Walk the halls during lunch or outside when it's nice. Do a quick meditation during a prep or during lunch. 

4.  Write down one or two positive things that happen at the end of each day.  Keep track of them somewhere to look back on when you are having a rough moment, day, or week. 

Try something new or start doing something you used to do again. Give yourself permission to take care of yourself each day and know that it will only make things better.