By Dr. Tina Bedell, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist, Pastoral Institute
Do you wake up and hit the ground running?
You take a shower and make yourself a cup of coffee. You get the kids dressed, fed, and to school and off to work you go. You sort through the piles of papers on your desk wondering how you will meet deadlines. You gulp down your lunch while attempting to return phone calls and respond to emails. You return home, help with homework, and throw a meal together.
The chores are piling up but you have made a committment to volunteer for a new project in the community so you put it off until the next day only to realize it’s your fifth day doing that. Now it’s time to take your kids to their various activities. By the time you get home, it’s time to go to bed just to start the process all over again the next day. Sound familiar?
Does it feel like there is not enough time in the day?
Life can be so busy that before you know it you find yourself off balance. The demands of a career and personal life can be difficult to juggle and are often stressful. It is easy to get caught up with the responsibilities of the day and lose tough with what’s important. Even when you are cognizant of the importance of maintaining balance, it seems difficult to stop the pattern.
Balance brings peace, fulfillment, and purpose to your life. Without it we are left feeling depleted, stressed, and frustrated. We allow ourselves to become overcommitted, overworked and therefore overwhelmed. This con result in mental health issues such as anxiety and depression, physical ailments as well as a host of interpersonal issues.
Balance can be achieved but it does take some effort to break the pattern in which we currently operate.
Try these five things to put balance back in your life:
- Prioritize
- Make time for family & friends
- Give yourself permission to say “no.”
- Manage your time effectively.
- Meditate.
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For more info, contact the Pastoral Institute at 706-649-6500 or 1-800-649-6446. Reprinted with permission.
