Sep 26, 2010

7. Develop ways to "recharge your battery"

Find ways to recharge your battery

If you consider a normal school day as a teacher, you probably envision running from one classroom to another, solving problems over your lunch hour, coping with the demands of grading papers and developing innovative teaching strategies. It may seem like every spare moment of the day is being filled with responsibilities that come along with being an educator. I think teachers tend to take on too much and it is important to balance your life and find times to relax. I thought about all of the ways that I “recharge my battery” and while I was doing that a proverb that my grandpa used to say came to mind: “a good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor's book.”

The first one pertains to my life in a very prominent way. I surround myself with family members and friends who love to laugh. It is important to spend time with family and friends. They can help you to relax and they can bring the greatest laughter into your life. They help keep me energized by lifting my spirits. I enjoy playing board games with them and I find that that really does reduce my stress. When I come home from a stressful day of school and need to take a break, I sit down with my friends or family and we select a game from our library and enjoy our time together. We can talk about our days or just simply enjoy the ever-flowing amount of jokes that come out of our mouths.

According to experts, eight hours of sleep is the recommended amount of sleep that each of us should be getting every night. There have been studies that have suggested that people who can tolerate less sleep over a considerable amount of time are less productive than someone who gets up to eight hours of sleep every night. I have started drinking decaf coffee after 3:00 and I exercise six hours or more before bedtime. I have also found it beneficial to keep a Sleep Diary. Changing sleep patterns is very challenging, so I thought that I would start with keeping a diary so that I will be able to stick with a sleep program.

It is important to spend time with family and friends. They can help you to relax and they can bring more laughter into your life. They can also help energize me by lifting my spirits. I enjoy playing board games and I find that that really does reduce my stress. When I come home from a stressful day of school and need to take a break, I sit down with my friends and we select a game from our library and enjoy our time together.

Another way that I recharge my battery is by exercising. One of the short term benefits of working out it that it helps reduce your stress level. It also reduces fatigue and boosts energy levels. It does not have to be a lengthy workout at the gym. It could just be a simple ten minute walk throughout the day, or a friendly game of basketball with a friend. I have been a competitive swimmer since I was five years old and I think that getting into a pool and swimming laps is one of the best forms of exercise. It allows my mind to wonder and gives my body a chance to re-energize.

Exercise

I have been an active exerciser my entire life. It has always been important for me to stay in shape and maintain a healthy life style. I have been on a swim team since I was eight years old and I was on a sectional winning high school team. I practiced six days a week for three hours a day. Swimming helped me to learn time management. I was able to create a schedule that would allow me to get my swim time in but also allowed me an ample amount of time to get my studies done. Swimming has always been a way for me to distress myself and develop a positive mindset.

Once I came to college, I thought I would have to give up my passion for swimming because Goshen College does not offer a swim team. I soon came to realize that without some form of exercise, I was developing a negative mindset. I had no way to reduce my stress level, so I tried to develop other ways to relax my mind. I started swimming casually at the college pool. It was not as rigorous as my high school practices, but it helped me accomplish what I needed it to. I also started playing basketball for fun. I would shoot around in the gym and sometimes strangers would join me. I find this relaxing and I'm still able to stay active with it.

Get More Sleep

In high school, I never had to worry about the amount of sleep that I got each night. I was on a schedule that included school, swim team, dinner, homework, and then bed. I was always exhausted by the time I climbed into the covers, so I never had an issue with staying up late. Once I arrived at college, my sleep patterns were completely different. I was staying up past 12:00 and waking up at earlier times then usual. I was also sleeping in late on the weekends and then starting over again on Monday. After a couple of weeks of this routine, I realized that I needed to change my sleep routine. I started to make an effort to be in bed by 11:00 each night, and I reduced the amount of caffeine that I consumed during the day to help ensure that I would fall asleep. Once I started exercising again, I never had an issue with staying awake at night. On most nights, I get close to eight hours of sleep and my mental state has increased dramatically. I am no longer drained during the day, which requires less caffeine and no naps. I have a more positive outlook, and am able to accomplish more of my tasks during the day. The feeling of getting everything done helps reduce my stress level, and that is credited to the amount of sleep I am obtaining at night.

Spending Time with Family and Friends

I am very family oriented, and being able to spend time with my family is important to me. Since I have been at college, I have not been able to spend as much time with my family as I would like to. I help reduce stress by making sure I talk to my parents at least once a day. It gives me time to talk to them about my problems and get caught up on what is happening. My parents have a way of instantly calming me down and they always have ways of helping me stay positive. Another way that I stay in touch is by spending time with my sister who also goes to Goshen College. We go hot-tubing five times a week for thirty minutes. The hot-tubing aspect helps us to relax but it also gives me time to talk to my sister. We discuss what happened during the day, and also to compare stories of what is happening at home. We also make it a priority to go out to dinner once a week with our aunt who lives here. Being able to spend time with families helps me to relax, let loose, and laugh.

Friends are also emphasized in my life. With no close family around, I rely on my friends for stress relief. We usually go out to dinner, watch movies, or sit around and talk. We make sure not to bring negative thoughts into our bonding times. We also try not to discuss issues that will bring more stress or cause us to worry.

Develop A Schedule

I have developed a daily schedule that I try to follow everyday:






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