Remember when you were a kid? You always seemed to have too much time on your hands. Nothing exciting ever happened and you often found yourself bored to tears. Oh, how we long for those lazy days now. If there’s one problem that almost every adult faces, it’s a lack of free time. No matter how you try to schedule in a little respite, you seem to fill every waking moment with something that just can’t wait. If it’s not squeezing in your annual physical, it’s running out for the item you forgot on your grocery list, washing the dog, or dealing with any number of household “fix it” projects that have fallen by the wayside. And you have no idea how it happened, but every time you blink, half the year is gone. You’re almost positive time has sped up while you weren’t looking. And in the midst of all this running around, you’ve managed to compile a huge debt of unreleased stress that leaves your mind spinning all night and your body tense and twitchy. You need a break! Here are the top 10 ways to take it.
- Do some yoga. I’m not talking about 105 degrees of Bikram or some exercise program that will leave you feeling like a pretzel. Just do a nice, simple routine that stretches the sore spots and leaves you feeling like a fresh, new person.
- Get a massage. It doesn’t get much better than an hour or two of letting someone else take care of you. So set aside some table time to let a strong pair of hands work out the kinks.
- Go to the park. How long has it been since you flopped down on a blanket, curled your toes in the grass, and watched the leaves flutter and the clouds go by? Probably too long. Embrace the favorite pastime of kids everywhere and find your inner peace.
- Read a book. Let’s see, you’ve had the first Stieg Larsson novel gathering dust on your nightstand for the past year without so much as cracking the cover. So brew up some coffee, find a cozy corner, and immerse yourself in the world of Lisbeth Salander.
- Take a dip. Lie out on a lawn chair and soak up some vitamin D before stepping into the cooling waters of a swimming pool (laze at home if that’s an option or visit your local community pool).
- Take a nap. It doesn’t get any more relaxing than watching reflected light inch across your ceiling as you slowly drift off to dreamland for a mid-afternoon siesta.
- Take a walk. Sometimes a little motion can loosen up your limbs, get you breathing deeper, and help to clear some of the cobwebs from your mind. So take a stroll around the block or get back to nature on a nearby hiking trail.
- Play hooky. If, like most people, work is number one on your list of stressors, take a page from the playbook of your teenage self and cut class (so to speak). Spend the day loafing on the couch, lunching with friends, or shopping downtown. But avoid anything even vaguely resembling work!
- Plant a garden. Tending to plants and watching them grow to maturity is not only a good way to fill your home with flowers or get organic produce. It’s also a proven way to decompress and focus your mental faculties.
- Pop a pill. This should be reserved for special occasions when absolutely nothing else will work. If you’re going out of your mind and you cannot find another way to relax, ask your doctor to prescribe something to take the edge off. You shouldn’t make a regular habit of it, but a Xanax, Valium, or Ambien once in awhile can allow you to let go of your problems and help you get back to the well-balanced individual you know you can be.
Derwood Talbot is a writer for the popular book review website, Written Word. Browse the site to find information on the latest book gadgets and information on your favorite authors.
