I learned an important lesson in high school the day I skipped school to go with my friends to see “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.” The redundancy of the message was clear enough for even this high schooler to figure out – every once in a while it is important to take a mental health day. A day unlike the normal routine. A day where you do things you WANT to do and take time off from the normal world where you do a whole lot of things you HAVE to do.
If you think of the stereotypical American vacation, you probably think of a station wagon driving through a national park with the next stop “the second largest ball of twine on the face of the earth, which is only four short hours away?” But our post today is to remind you that a vacation can also happen in a day, “a vacation day,” a mental health day. And with a global pandemic, a severe recession worse than most of us (unless you were around when “Gone with the Wind” was a new release), jets falling into water, almost 10 million people receiving unemployment, nuclear weapon testing, shootings in museums, well, you get the picture, we all could use a little break now and then.
Yesterday, I took such a break. I took Friday off. Here is what I learned: if you are living with an unusual amount of stress, you should figure out how to do it too. And don’t just sit on the couch and watch re-runs of the Beverly Hillbillies (okay, go ahead and do that, that “Granny and Jethro” are such a hoot!), but even better than that, we recommend focusing on your health and well being. A correction back to a new normal if you have gotten off track. I started with a long mountain bike ride. Actually, it wasn’t intended to be quite so long but I got lost in the middle of a state park and it added 45 extra minutes to my ride. The getting lost part was a great diversion from my day to day office job. While lost, you have to consider what happens if you stay lost – could I catch that jack rabbit for dinner? Could I start a fire with my stainless steel canteen and some rocks? But I digress.
Let me cut to the chase. I biked (exercise), had some great seafood (nutritious), got a massage (relaxed and mental health boost), and hung out with great friends (more mental health). Those are the body and mental health things I did and today I feel calm, relaxed, happy, and newly prepared to face the world. At Fantasy Healthball, we know these are tough times and we care about your well being. So take our advice, take a break from the stress and the vending machine junk food. Pick up that banana and bowl of blueberries. Get some good exercise. See a friend. It is tough times out there, remember to take care of yourself. — Jim Ballard
Subscribe to our RSS
