Several months ago, I wrote about my battle with COVID-19. This past Saturday, I went for my first vaccine shot. Admittedly, I was not prepared for the harsh side effects. I presumed I would not experience them until the second shot in four weeks. About eight hours following the shot, I found myself bedridden for nearly 36 hours with a fever, body aches, chills, and sweats — many symptoms reminiscent of three months prior. I was thrown for a loop.
As I laid there in my bed, I thought about everything on my to-do list that I had planned to do on Sunday that I didn’t get to do. I grabbed my phone, put the ringer on silent, and fell into a deep sleep. Monday morning, I woke up from a daze and into a very slow start to my week. Again, I was reminded that our bodies tell us when we need to rest, and we need to adhere to that message.
The forced and unexpected rest of the COVID-19 vaccine gave me time to catch up on much-needed sleep (14-plus hours, two nights in a row) and caused me to take a mental and physical break from the chaos of moving into a new home, tackling a full client project schedule, and undertaking other personal commitments. Putting my phone on silent was challenging, but a necessity. Yet, why don’t I do this on a regular basis? Why is it incredibly challenging to disconnect, unplug, and step away from work-related tasks?
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Like most lawyers, I am driven to achieve and to be a perfectionist at all I do. I am constantly focused on being productive and using my time wisely. Most days, I am focused on caring for my business, my very senior dog (who is still thriving at 16), my husband, and my family. As a result, I often give very little downtime to myself.
We are always in a rush to get somewhere, finish a project, or follow-up with a client. We chant how “busy” we are as we serve others in work and business, but at what point do we serve ourselves and our own personal needs? When do we pause and take a break for ourselves?
The pandemic has depleted all of us in some way or another — and we need to make a promise to ourselves to rest, relax, and enjoy things at a slower pace. We need to give ourselves grace to postpone a night out, obtain a project extension, and even binge watch a new series on Netflix just to give ourselves time to recharge our internal batteries — mentally, physically, and emotionally. We owe it to ourselves to take that time.
Don’t be afraid to disconnect, even if it’s for 24 hours. Give yourself time to step away from overthinking, overplanning, and overworking. Your mind and body will thank you for it.
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Wendi Weiner is an attorney, career expert, and founder of The Writing Guru, an award-winning executive resume writing services company. Wendi creates powerful career and personal brands for attorneys, executives, and C-suite/Board leaders for their job search and digital footprint. She also writes for major publications about alternative careers for lawyers, personal branding, LinkedIn storytelling, career strategy, and the job search process. You can reach her by email at [email protected], connect with her on LinkedIn, and follow her on Twitter @thewritingguru.