Jillian Gomez | On July 10, 2015
I am a wellness junkie.Every day, I read article after article about going outside, meditating, drinking green smoothies and having perfect posture.
I read all of this while sitting in a dark cubicle with no natural light, slumped over my microwave mac and cheese while sitting at my regular non-standing desk during my lunch hour.
Other days, I am eating a homemade kale salad after taking a lunchtime yoga class where I set an intention of self-kindness.If you are anything like me, there are likely some wellness words that have been permanently burned into your brain. Words like green, authentic, mindful, present, clean, thankful. Along with these words there are probably some other, not so positive words, that you think up like should, if only, tired, tomorrow, guilt.
In this age of Go Big or Go Home, I am raising my “Good Enough” flag and forgiving myself for breaking so many of these wellness rules. I originally set out to learn about wellness because I wanted to better myself, not to put unrealistic expectations on myself. Here are some of the wellness rules that I consistently break:
I Sleep With The TV On
There is a lot of advice online about how to be a better sleeper and I have tried them all. I know that I am supposed to stay away from the infamous “blue light,” keep my bedroom dark and cool, and try different relaxation techniques to drift off into a deep sleep, but I can never seem to turn my brain off. Instead, every night, I turn on a sitcom (thank you, Netflix, for adding Friends because I had literally worn out my DVDs). I turn my TV sleep timer to 90 minutes, and on most nights, I am asleep before the TV turns off.
I Compete With Myself In Yoga Class
I am a naturally competitive person and this does not match up with the ideals of yoga. I am supposed to be intuitive with my body. If something feels too hard, hold back. However, in my brain, if something is hard, I keep going because I am proving my strength and abilities to myself. Sometimes, I hit an awesome arm balance and I feel so powerful for the rest of the day. Other times, I fall out of a pose that usually is simple for me. Either way, I am still getting a workout and focusing my mind, which is a win for me.
I Don’t Meditate
I tried meditating for a solid month. Not actually meditating for the duration of a month (my hips hurt just thinking about it), but I attempted meditation multiple times in the span of a month. I bought a guided meditation app, that to its credit, made me feel wonderfully relaxed when I used it. However, like many habits that aren’t given enough time to form, my meditation practice went away. These days, working in an office, there is no safe space to meditate during the day, so my new way to unwind is sitting in my car with the chair reclined back and listening to an audiobook, and honestly, my head feels clearer after that than any meditation session I have ever had.
I Eat Lunch At My Desk
I can’t help it. Work gets busy and depending on your job, you just have to be at your desk during lunchtime. Yes, it is depressing, and yes, it isn’t good for me, and yes, my eyes are sore from staring at a screen—but sometimes, it has to be done. I have allowed myself to not feel guilt about the days when I don’t see sun after 9 a.m.
I Look At My Smartphone First Thing In The Morning
I know I should get up and open a window and stretch while listening to energizing yet soothing music, but my brain needs to turn on first. The easiest way to do that is grabbing my iPhone. I check Instagram, Facebook and Twitter first so that I can maybe find a funny video, a photo of some gorgeous European landscape or a listicle titled “10 Reasons Millennials Crave Pizza.” Then I do the unthinkable—I check my work email and calendar. I know, I know, this is cardinal sin of work/life balance, but it is necessary to get my head in the right space for the type of day I am going to have.
Even after breaking all of these rules, the wellness gods have not yet struck me down where I sit/stand/savasana. We are all trying to get by in this world and putting so much pressure on ourselves will make even the strongest of us crumble. Be kind to yourselves.
Feature Photo via We Heart It