A late Wednesday post as I just got off work, and somehow made my hour drive back home despite how insanely tired I am. At my work, hospital visits are a normal occurence and last nights lasted until 3am.
The city I work in is a bit….troubled. There are many gangs, violence is prevalent, and drugs and street life are rampant. This makes for some interesting incidents. Last night I saw the aftermath of a gun and knife fight, which included a number of adults and children were hurt in the process. There was a lot of blood, a lot of screaming, and a lot of police. Being a bit of a small town girl, it was pretty scary and pretty sad. From some seasoned veterans in this city, this was a pretty mild incident.
Anywho, despite all of this, I feel good about my job and am just planning on taking a nap asap since I am so tired. That being said, I thought I’d brainstorm some self care activities.
In my line of work, we are taught over and over again the importance of self care. Self care is using your down time to recognize any feelings of stress, burn out, or any other negative feelings and find activities which will alleviate those feelings. For example exercise, reading, or on a day like today: napping.
Some of my favorite self care activities include:
-reading
-window shopping
-watching TV (this is something I never do! We actually don’t even have cable)
-exercising
-chatting to girlfriends
-painting
So, my question is…what would you do for self care? What else should I give a go? How would you unwind after a stressful day?
Reading and web-browsing are my two main ways of relaxing. Wiki-hopping seems to lull me into the most calm state ever, so long as I avoid reading about people who make me angry!
Oooh I can (and do) spend hours reading blogs, and celeb gossip
Wow – I can’t even imagine…
To de-stress from a day I love creating something in the kitchen. Even if it’s a simple salad – not actually “cooking” anything – there’s something about the preparing, the chopping…something that soothes me.
I wish you a self care day!
I agree, the kitchen can be so calming and therapeutic. The only thing I don’t like is we have a single sink and no dishwasher, so dishes are a huge pain in my butt.
I can’t even imagine, either. You have to have a lot of composure ot handle a situation like that.
My self-care activities include window shopping (because it allows me to walk), reading, and baking. All of those acitivites get my mind off of the stresses in life and allow me to relax.
I can’t believe I didn’t list baking. That’s one of my top three for sure.
Yep, sure don’t miss the coast. I am in awe of you and the work that you do though! If it were me, my first order of business would be a bubble bath
Definitely not a bike ride, haha. I know you asked and let’s just say it was fun at the time but my butt is bruised today from the stupid seat!
Oooh a bubble bath! I take so many in the winters, but with the summer we’re having one could totally fit the bill!
Pedicures and manicures are the perfect de-stresser for me!
I’m so sorry you had such a stressful day. You’re doing important work…I’m glad that even after an evening like you had, you’re still so optimistic! Favourite self-care activities: walking the dog, painting (rather badly), reading.