Are You Feeling Happy Today?

Are you happy, sad, or stressed?

Are you enjoying writing as much as you usually do?

I had to do a bit of a reality check today. I have been reading and writing for days, and I haven't been out hardly at all this week. I didn't notice it until:

• I started feeling down,
• I started feeling exhausted and agitated for no real reason,
• I felt psychologically bored, despite having some written work to do,
• I lost my appetite,
• I felt Claustrophobic which is an 'irrational fear of confined spaces.'

I had no idea why I was feeling this way because normally I love my work and I enjoy my home life, though over the last few days I started feeling:

• Drained,
• Exhausted,
• uninterested in daily life.

I had lost my usual ability to get up and go.

Today, I woke up feeling low, and I clicked.

I had become overwhelmed by working because I had been working longer hours than I usually do, without realizing it.

I had become too absorbed in my work, and I was losing track of time to the point where I was taking no breaks.

I usually take at least 20 minutes a day to have a coffee, and I at least take one whole day off to do other things, like go out with my husband.

Yesterday we went for a walk through Kinson Common in Bournemouth, U.K.

Here is a picture.

I did feel better after that walk. You can see and hear all kinds of nature in the Common from bubbling streams, birds tweeting, and even squirrels jumping.

When we came home, I made the mistake of going straight back to my work without thinking about myself

Today, I did a little reading and writing this morning, then I went for a short walk around the area in which I live with my husband. When I came home, I stopped to have a drink and a ten-minute break to get myself together before writing.

I have now written a schedule on my phone which is set against my alarm clock to remind myself to take breaks.

As writers, we can get carried with working; particularly if we enjoy it. However:

• A painter might enjoy painting, but he still needs breaks,
• A singer who loves singing still needs breaks,
• Even when we are writing in our journals, we may still need a break.

When people write as a form of self-employment, they sometimes have a deadline that they have to meet, and some might set their own deadlines.

However, it is still important to take care of your mental health; therefore, no matter what work you are doing, it is important to take a break.

There are many ways you can take a break:

• Take a bath or shower,
• Listen to some relaxing music,
• Go for a ten-minute walk,
• Watch a television program.
• Take the time to eat and drink.

The trick is to do something that is completely different from the task or work that you are doing and make sure that it is something that you find relaxing.

I feel much more relaxed and refreshed today for slowing down and taking a little time to do some self-care in between reading and writing.

I am more able to focus and think straight, and I feel much happier for it.

If I hadn't recognized that I needed to take a break, I might have broken down because I was stressing myself out, and that would not have done my writing, myself, or my husband any good at all.

So; please remember that it is good to take a break from your work, and take care of your mental health.