Avoiding work seeping into our private lives
After a busy day at work, we can tend to leave the office feeling overwhelmed by the rapid pace and overloaded with thoughts.
As we look back on the day’s activities, some of us may ruminate on what we didn’t achieve, what we forgot to do and what we could have done better. Anxiety can mount and mental fatigue can set our minds wandering, making it difficult for us to concentrate.
On the other hand, some of us may carry over the same frantic, overactive pace into our private lives, with the result that we can’t make ourselves available to our friends and family, and we set about our household tasks with the same level of stress, trying to not waste time and to be efficient.
These types of difficulties indicate the need for a “decompression chamber” at the end of a working day.
The transition from workplace to home, even if the journey is short, can be a key moment to digest the day and prepare for tomorrow. It is an opportunity to shift the focus away from work and back to ourselves.
This can be challenging when we work from home: without a physical journey there is no clear distinction between our work and our private lives. In such cases, it can help to adopt a habit, such as saying a certain phrase out loud as we shut down our computer, or else leaving the room and closing the door, changing clothes, performing a breathing exercise or getting some fresh air. Equally, an afterwork activity, such as a walk with friends or doing some sport, can help to take our minds off work.
Deciding to set clear limits for our working day helps to avoid work-related issues and worries taking over our lives. Successfully leaving work physically and mentally behind not only benefits us in our private lives but also means we can continue to be efficient at work the following day. A healthy break like this is necessary for us to stay motivated.
Take action
As part of the “Efficiency and caring at work” campaign, the Work Well Feel Well website now offers useful resources that can be downloaded, including an exercise to help to create your own decompression chamber after work.
Other suggestions include:
- Cardiac coherence: A short breathing exercise can help to decompress. The CERN Medical service has developed a guided video, which is just one of the resources available on the mental health support webpage.
- Bike to work: Cycling home after a busy day can be an excellent way to decompress, and more and more members of the CERN community are taking part in the yearly Bike to Work initiative. For more details and tips, check out the Bike to Work FAQ and the Bike to CERN web pages. Stay safe by completing the Road Traffic – Bike Riding online course and reviewing CERN’s cycling safety tips.