Monday, April 18, 2011

a garden variety

i think it has all finally caught up with me. lately i have been severely struggling with leaving work at work. as i have mentioned before things have been pretty stressful in the workplace recently and i have found that it is not just affecting my 8 hours at the office, but also my home time, my zach time, my workouts, and my sleep. i think about and worry about my work struggles 24 hours a day. i have always been pretty confident in my ability to get things done, whatever the challenge or problem i have always felt as though i have had the confidence, or pride, to complete it, or figure it out, however, i have been second guessing myself lately, wondering if i have done enough, if i am doing enough or if i should have done things different. i imagine that anyone working in a family business has some difficulty making the distinction between work and home, but i seem to be having an extraordinarily hard time with it these days. with that being said, i woke up this morning with a terrible head and ear ache, and a significant enough lack of energy to take the day off of work. i feel as though the stress of it all finally won the health battle. i hope to soon find a better way to separate my work life and home life more effectively, and to somehow regain my confidence... any tips, or words of advice are welcomed.
but,
for now,
i am going to reflect on some of the positive things i have neglected to blog about here recently.

*i have found needed release at a new (to me) yoga studio. the past three weeks of practice have taught me a successful crow pose, a few different head stands, a held forearm stand, a full wheel (which for some reason took me forever to accomplish), and more effective breathing techniques. during the hour + at padma, my mind is present in the moment, my body is challenged, and i feel accomplished. i am very grateful for that release.


*we planted our garden complete with tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, bell peppers, okra, squash, zucchini, watermelon and cantaloupe. we decided to mix it up this year. i also potted basil, oregano, and citronella plants. my thumbs are by no means 'green' but hopefully with the help of my more gardening prone husband, we will eat the freshest of vegetables in the near future.



*we planted a fruit bearing pear tree in the back yard. i is awfully small now, but i can't wait to watch it grow to become a large, beautiful, white blossoming shade tree.


*my dad and i completed a 100k (65mile) bike ride last weekend. we rode along a bluebonnet trail that was absolutely breath taking. this was our first rally this year and it sure will be hard to top.

picture via

*zach and i confirmed (with ourselves and our boss) that we are taking a long weekend in May to get away. we plan to spend an uninterrupted weekend at my parents lakehouse with nothing to do but lay in the sun and fish off the dock. it may not be a colorado vacation, but it is certainly something to look forward to!

5 comments:

  1. yoga, gardens, bike rides & vacations are all great things to help with stress! it's definitely a tricky thing to learn to separate home & work, and it will probably take time and practice before you can easily do that. i'm a therapist and a large part of graduate school was learning how to take care of myself so the stress of hearing people's problems all day long doesn't effect my home life.

    the two things that are really helpful for me are:
    1. have a ritual - take a beat before going into work that designates "work time" and then at the end of work take 15-30min. to do something totally stress relieving/thrilling. some people i know like to take a walk around their neighborhood before heading in to their house, other people i know like to jam out to a favorite song in their car before going home. whatever it is, make it a sacred ritual that you do every day to designate the end of work and the beginning of your personal life.
    2. in order to keep work out of your home, keep your home out of work - this takes a bit more effort, but try not to talk much about your home/personal life at work. if you work with family, i imagine this will be super hard, but if personal drama creeps into conversation, just say "can we talk about this after work?" this just helps a lot keep the two portions of your day separate in your mind, which will help a lot when you get home.

    of course, it will take a lot of telling yourself over and over "oops, i'm thinking about work again. self, i give you permission not to think it about it until tomorrow morning at 8am."

    i hope that helps some!

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  2. Aww I hope it gets better soon!! It sounds like you are doing some really great 'de-stress' activites. It sounds like you just need a few days off, to do all of the things you enjoy :) When I'm down, I meditate, watch my favourite shoes and listen to my favourite music, bake cupcakes, and spend time with loved ones.

    Hope this helps!

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  3. chels! i know you will get through this, although i have no helpful words of wisdom, as i too tend to bring my work worries home sometimes, i know you will get through, past and over it. feel better, i know how much an ear ache can suck, its basically the WORST. i love your little garden and am happy you and zach have a little, special getaway planned coming up- you deserve it :)

    i love you, feel better.

    Spy

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  4. congrats on all the positive things--a 100k bike race seems like a huge deal. i gotta get myself back to an exercise class, maybe it's finally time i gave yoga a go.

    ps: good luck with working out the whole work balance.

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  5. Props to you for beginning to take some really great steps- yoga is so helpful. I also use aromatherapy to just help me relax, unwind, and to refocus my energy when I need to. It sounds like you're an amazing asset to your company- but do focus on yourself and putting yourself first in this instance! :) MademoiselleMichael

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