How to Take An Effective Mental Health Day

Give yourself permission.

Part of the joys of living in the US (sarcasm) is the never-ending need to hustle and grind and to make ourselves feel guilty of taking time for ourselves. We are so good at hustle culture, that now relaxing feels like a sin. So as much as we might want to take a day to relax, recharge, and reset, so many people find themselves saying they will take a day but instead choose to do so many other things.

I am guilty of that- as much as I know that my best ideas come to me when I am relaxed, in my energy, and living in the now.

So how do you go from relaxation guilt to actually having a real rest day?

You set the intention of how you want to feel at the beginning. NOT what you want to accomplish or the things you want to do. You think about how you want to FEEL then chase that feeling.

Next, you give yourself permission to do the thing that will get you the feeling. When was the last time you felt that feeling your chasing? Was it when you sat and just watched the birds outside? Was it at the top of mountain meditating after a great hike?

This one— for me is the game changer — but it’s also the one I find myself resisting the most: Set a boundary with yourself. You’re going to NOT allow yourself to do anything that is not in alignment with your goal of that feeling. So if you even have an inkling that you might see something that makes you feel like you should be working or even accidentally that gets you in work mode— set the boundary at the beginning of the day, that you will not engage in that.

For me, it is definitely scrolling IG. While I could lie and tell myself it’s just mindless scrolling to relax, I will inevitably find a reel that sparks an idea for something I could create then I go into it and before I know it it’s an hour or two that I have not done that I really needed to do—- have and ENJOY a mental health day.

In order to take an effective mental health day, the most important thing is to enjoy yourself knowing that the time you are taking for yourself is going to have major ROI when you go back refreshed with new excitement and ideas to start on.