The Struggle Juggle of it All

I don't know how actual adults do it. How do they juggle work, home life, and a social life? I have loads of laundry at home, piles of paperwork at work, and friends that I want to see. I haven't managed to figure out a way to balance it all. Just when I think that I have one aspect of my life handled, something else goes haywire. So I've started to look for ways to cope with the stresses of my life and here's what I've learned so far.

1. It is OK to ask for help. 

I HATE asking for help and honestly that is probably my biggest demise. I like showing the world that I am independent and can do things my self. However, we know that we are supposed to be able to rely on each other to make it through life. So I've started to ask for help with the things that I struggle with at both home and work. So much of my work life last year was me trying to do things by my self because I wanted to prove to my coworkers that just because I was a first year athletic trainer didn't mean that I wasn't capable of doing my job. Honestly, I became really burnt out by the time Spring sports rolled around, but that will change this year. I've already started asking for help with minor things that other people could help me do. 

2. Taking a break is good. 

But also don't take too long of a break. I love my house being spotless, and I love my work being done, but is that worth sacrificing my mental health to have it all done in one day? No! I used to do this in college with studying. If I got through with 10 questions I would take a 5 minute mental break, and I've started doing that with my barely adult life. I'll deep clean one room of my house and then take a 5 minute walk or phone break and start again. Or if I'm at work, I'll write 5 SOAP notes and then go to the front office to check my mailbox. 

3. Don't be so hard on yourself. 

If things don't get done in a certain way or you fail with getting everything done that you had planned, don't be hard on yourself. So much of my life is planning and staying on top of things, and I often fail miserably at that. I used (and still am) to be very hard on my self when I didn't do what I thought I was capable of. That goes for juggling life too. If I over sleep and don't go to the gym, or if I really wanted to get through 3 loads of laundry and cook enough dinner to be able to pack a lunch tomorrow and don't accomplish that, I just have to adapt and change and do what I can. We can't punish ourselves for being human. There isn't much more we can do than that.