5 Practical Tips for Managing Work-Life Challenges

A fact that no one can deny is that life is busy. Going to jobs, maintaining relationships with family and friends, housework, and raising children takes time and mental energy! It can become difficult to balance different parts of your life. Work demands can often feel just as pressing as meeting your daily needs. Unfortunately, stress management can feel impossible, and you can be left feeling as if the weight of the world is on your shoulders.  

Managing stress is an ongoing process essential for maintaining mental well-being. Let's explore some practical ways to help balance two very important aspects of your life: work and home. 

Recognizing Stressors 

Stress, like many things, can be good in moderation. Stress helps motivate us to prioritize and accomplish important tasks in our lives. But sometimes, stress can feel overwhelming from all directions. Our minds and bodies are very much connected and cannot tell the difference between a threatening situation and an intense email from our boss. As we expose our bodies to stressful situations over time, cortisol levels in the body increase. Cortisol is a chemical that works with adrenaline to prepare our bodies for stressful or threatening situations. Too much cortisol can increase inflammation in our bodies and make us feel unwell. 

When our bodies are stressed, it can be hard to identify the root causes. Start by making a list of your responsibilities and expectations. As you write, examine your feelings and how your body reacts. Do you feel anxious or dread? Do you feel immobile or unable to make decisions? Do you feel sluggish and unable to focus? These can be signs from your body that you are experiencing negative side effects from stress. 

By writing and identifying the tasks in our lives that create the most stress, we are able to recognize what is threatening to us versus what are important things to be done. This helps our minds regulate our bodies and release us from the flight, fight, and freeze responses that cortisol and adrenaline throw our bodies into.

Practicing Self-Care  

An important part of practicing work-life balance is to have a good self-care routine. Building a self-care routine takes time and practice. When stress levels rise, self-care is often the first thing that people neglect.  

Many people have trouble putting themselves first at work or at home. They are scared to say “No” at work or are afraid to ask for help because they don’t want to be a burden or appear incapable. At home, we feel the pressure to meet so many people's expectations of what it means to be a good parent and how to run a household. Add all of this together, and self-care can seem impossible. Over time, this can lead to burnout.  

How do you start a self-care routine? 

“Self-care” is commonly mislabeled as “treating yourself.” Taking time to get a massage or a sweet treat is great, but self-care is so much more than that. Self-care isn’t always fun - it’s doing the things you need to do to maintain mental and physical wellness.  

Some examples of self-care are as follows: 

• Staying hydrated by drinking water throughout the day
• Journaling on a schedule that works for you
• Exercising a few days per week 
• Creating a sleep routine 
• Setting dedicated quiet times that involve no screen time

Taking care of your physical body is the best defense against stress. Exercise can help relieve stress in our bodies. Physical and mental wellness activities keep stress hormone levels stable in the body, which is also the best defense against future stressors. 

Whether it’s committing to a daily 20-minute walk, taking a water bottle to work, or creating a specific bedtime ritual, small changes lead to big changes over time.  Instead of viewing self-care as another responsibility to check off your list, change your mindset to “I get to take care of myself today.”  It is important to recognize self-care as an opportunity rather than a requirement. An opportunity to feel better than you did yesterday. 

Setting Boundaries  

Last but certainly not least is the importance of setting boundaries in your life. It can be hard to say “no” or to disagree with someone important in your life, whether it be your boss, co-worker, or family member. Putting yourself first is not always comfortable, and some people make it seem as if it’s a selfish thing to do. You may fear that you won’t be seen as a team player at work or feel like a bad friend if you set boundaries. That can’t be further from the truth. By setting boundaries, you are able to pace yourself and present the best version of yourself at all times. Instead of feeling stretched too thin and unable to accomplish things at your desired level, you will be able to apply yourself with all your attention and focus. This will create better results within your work, home, and relationships. 

Some examples of boundary-setting at work: 

• Leave work at the door: Make it known that work hours are work hours and home hours are home hours. 
• Advocate for yourself: Request reasonable timeframes for tasks, and discuss with your supervisor how to list tasks from top priority to lowest priority.  
• Avoid workplace gossip.  
• Speak up when uncomfortable: If your manager or significant other does not know you’re struggling, your workload or household tasks may continue to increase. 

Going Forward 

If you feel overwhelmed and do not know where to begin with stress management, therapy is a good starting point. Speaking with a therapist can help you identify your values and goals in life and recognize stressors. Therapy is a great way to evaluate your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. At HopeNation, your therapist will help you practice setting boundaries and setting up a self-care routine. You will learn tools to help you overcome stressors and become stronger.