Normally I love a four day weekend but this Easter break I found myself reverting back to old behaviours I thought I’d left behind.  It took me a bit to recognise it and come out of it.

Here’s what I learned:

• Planning time out is a must – otherwise the whole point of guilt-free time out is gone. The time gets wasted, nothing is achieved and especially, the soul does not get nourished.
• And it must be done in plenty of time – great plans left to the last minute puts a lot of things out of direct control.
• Rainy weather is no excuse – I did enjoy a cinema outing and lunch with friends.
• Unless planned, great lengths of time alone can do more harm than good – the loneliness, the negative head talk and the downward spiral that follows does not bring about calm and relaxation.

My head talk took me to dark places, triggered by pet sitting responsibilities.  Currently, I’m caring for a 23-year-old cat; she is old, she needs a little more care and she is suffering from arthritis.

And here’s what I did:

• I reached out for help – I rang the local vet to get a reality check.
• I called a friend – who was able to talk me out of where I’d gone and bring me back to a place of reasonableness.
• I went for a walk – getting the blood flowing, exploring the area and seeing the world from a new perspective helped me see the world from a new perspective.
• I took the pressure off – consciously relaxing and allowing things to come up, letting them go and realising things really are okay meant calm and relaxation could happen.

Letting go:

• The world of perfection and responsibility are high ideals, not places to live in for any length of time.
• It’s okay to have a bad day: sometimes the best thing to do is just to let it run its course without having to fix it.

Choosing worry and responsibility over fun and connection is a sure way to spoil a good time! I make light of it now but I once lived pretty much full time in that space. After experiencing the extremes this past weekend, I’m glad I now have strategies to live life a whole other (and much more enjoyable) way.

 

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