How Do You De-Stress?

[creativenikki]

What do you do to de-stress?  

Yesterday was a just plain awful day for me.  It started when I went to leave (with the baby and a million things in my hands) only to realize my husband had the car keys.  Follow that up with leaving 15 minutes late in a different car, getting a red light ticket on my 90 minute, traffic-clogged drive to work, and about a million things going wrong at work and you have my day.  It sucked.  Driving home took another hour and a half because, you know, 5 rain drops means no one can drive anymore.  I was incredibly angry, frustrated and stressed by the time I got home.  I ended up booking a massage just to get some relief, but I cannot afford to do that everyday.

So, what should I do?  I would normally have a glass of wine and watch some mindless TV after the baby's in bed.  But, no wine.  I hate baths and find them incredibly boring and just unpleasant.  I love massages but they are expensive and just not something I can afford to do multiple times a week.  I am just realizing now that I might be a little depressed, because none of my hobbies have much appeal to me now.  I used to make jewelry or do other crafty things, but lately that seems like way too much trouble.  

So how do you un-wind after a bad day?  

[Urnesha]

9 minutes ago, creativenikki said:

What do you do to de-stress?  

Yesterday was a just plain awful day for me.  It started when I went to leave (with the baby and a million things in my hands) only to realize my husband had the car keys.  Follow that up with leaving 15 minutes late in a different car, getting a red light ticket on my 90 minute, traffic-clogged drive to work, and about a million things going wrong at work and you have my day.  It sucked.  Driving home took another hour and a half because, you know, 5 rain drops means no one can drive anymore.  I was incredibly angry, frustrated and stressed by the time I got home.  I ended up booking a massage just to get some relief, but I cannot afford to do that everyday.

So, what should I do?  I would normally have a glass of wine and watch some mindless TV after the baby's in bed.  But, no wine.  I hate baths and find them incredibly boring and just unpleasant.  I love massages but they are expensive and just not something I can afford to do multiple times a week.  I am just realizing now that I might be a little depressed, because none of my hobbies have much appeal to me now.  I used to make jewelry or do other crafty things, but lately that seems like way too much trouble.  

So how do you un-wind after a bad day?  

Ouch! Hope your day today is going better than yesterday!!! For me to de-stress I have to get off my laptop (which is harder than it sounds, I'm addicted to Facebook), put my phone on mute, pick up my kindle and read a good book. Nothing helps me de-stress as much as escaping into someone else's world. 

[Tigers2013]

This sounds exactly like me 3 days ago. I had an awful day at work, my live-in boyfriend was driving me crazy (I think he might have been breathing too loud next to me on the couch?), and my constant string of group texts with my sisters had me ready to throw my phone out the window. Normally I would do what you said...pour a glass of wine and sit my butt on the couch for some trashy reality TV for an hour or two. Not being able to do this made it even worse. I know you said you hate baths, and I agree with you, but I turned the shower on high heat to get the bathroom foggy, took a longer than usual shower where I basically just stood in the stream of water for 15-20 minutes, went the full nine yards afterwards with lotions and pampering (something I normally hate), and finished with some comfy sweats and a mug of hot tea. Now 9 days ago before I started Whole30, what I just described would have sounded awful.. I'm known to put off washing my hair until my boyfriend says something... but it was exactly what I needed. It worked for me when I didn't expect it to and maybe it'll work for you too. I hope you can find something that works for you even if it takes trying out a couple of different methods. 

[Betty7]

My condolences for such a horrible day. I think everyone that's done a Whole30 has experienced a day like that. Don't let it break you.

I readily admit that de-stressing with alcohol in the evenings is something I have done through the duration of my adulthood (I'm 34). It's hard for me to sit around and do nothing like watch mindless TV or play on the internet without a glass of wine in my hand. Soooo... I've been putting my W30 time to good use, and so far it's really helped to de-stress and improve my overall mood.

Yesterday I emptied the hall/bathroom closet - I went through boxes that haven't been opened since I moved into my house 2 years ago, threw out expired medications, washed all the towels, reorganized, etc. A few days before that, I went through every article of clothing in my dresser and closet and bagged up things for donation that I haven't worn in forever. A few days before that, I cleaned the kitchen and the bathroom from top to bottom. This weekend, I'm going to paint the basement floor. 

I guess it's all in how you approach it. Because all of those things are/were a good amount of work, but they are all things I've been avoiding doing. I really felt so. much. better. when I finished each thing... proud, you know? Total mental boost.

So what have you been putting off? What can you achieve that will make you feel good about yourself?