I’ve worked in healthcare for nearly 30 years, and if there is one thing I know, it’s this:
You can love what you do and still get tired.
You can enjoy the people you work with, care about the people you serve, be grateful for your career and still need time when nobody needs anything from you.
That doesn’t make you lazy.
It makes you human.
I Actually Like Going to Work
I’m fortunate today to work in an environment where I’m happy.
I love my patients. I have amazing coworkers. I enjoy the people around me, and that makes an enormous difference in how going to work feels.
But it wasn’t always that way.
I’ve worked in healthcare environments where I wasn’t happy, and when I realized a workplace was no longer right for me, eventually I made changes.
I learned that spending years miserable at work wasn’t something I wanted for myself.
We spend too much of our lives working for our jobs to consume every good part of us.
Of course, even in a workplace you love, there are still those days.
I deal with people all day long. Different personalities. Different needs. Different problems. Different emotions.
And because I handle so much of the day-to-day operation of a medical practice, there are days when my brain feels like it has had 37 browser tabs open since 8:00 in the morning.
Sometimes I even get what I call my little stress hot flashes at work.
That little desk fan?
Trust me. It earns its paycheck too. 😂
But underneath the humor is something I take seriously.
I have learned that I need time to decompress.
My Four-Day Workweek Changed Something for Me
For about seven years, I’ve had a four-day workweek.
And having that three-day weekend has become incredibly valuable to me.
Not because every weekend is some fabulous getaway.
Sometimes it is simply having another day when I can breathe.
A day to take care of myself.
A day to handle life.
A day to exercise.
A day to sit quietly.
A day to do absolutely nothing without feeling like I need to explain why.
A day to deal with whatever else life has placed on my shoulders.
That extra space has taught me something important about work-life balance:
Sometimes the thing you need most isn’t another productivity trick. You need room to be a person again.
The World Doesn’t Stop Being Heavy When We Go to Work
We don’t walk into our workplaces as empty little briefcases.
We bring our lives with us.
Relationships.
Family responsibilities.
Financial concerns.
Grief.
Health concerns.
Changes in our bodies.
The mental load of running a household.
Things happening in our communities and around the world.
And sometimes we’re carrying things nobody at work knows anything about.
Then we arrive at work and are expected to perform, solve problems, answer questions, meet deadlines, help people and keep moving.
That can be a lot.
Which is why I’ve stopped treating rest as something I have to earn.
Take the Mental-Health Day When You Truly Need It
I don’t take days off constantly. In my position, that would be difficult because I carry a lot of responsibility.
But yes, there have been times when I have taken a mental-health day.
Sometimes you know when you need one.
Your mind is tired.
Your patience is thin.
You’re overwhelmed.
Everything feels louder than it normally does.
And instead of pushing yourself until there’s nothing left, sometimes you need to stop.
Because here is something I remind myself of:
The work will still be there.
We can be dedicated employees without sacrificing ourselves to prove that dedication.
Your health and your life matter beyond your job title.
Work-Life Balance Won’t Look the Same for Everybody
I know everyone cannot simply switch to a four-day workweek.
Some people work five days. Some work six. Some work multiple jobs. Some are caregivers after they clock out. Some have children, aging parents, businesses, side hustles or responsibilities that make the idea of “free time” almost laughable.
That’s exactly why I don’t think balance has to mean creating some picture-perfect schedule.
Sometimes balance is smaller.
It might be not checking work email after a certain hour.
Taking your entire lunch break.
Going for a walk when you get home.
Sitting in your car for ten quiet minutes before walking into the house.
Exercising.
Taking a long shower.
Turning your phone over.
Reading.
Praying.
Listening to music.
Going to bed earlier.
Spending time alone.
Saying, “I can’t do that today.”
Small boundaries can create breathing room.
You Need a Life That Belongs to You Too
For many women, especially women who are used to taking care of everyone else, our identities can become wrapped around what we do for other people.
Employee.
Manager.
Mother.
Wife.
Partner.
Daughter.
Caregiver.
Problem solver.
The dependable one.
The person everybody calls.
But somewhere underneath all those responsibilities is still you.
And she needs some of your attention too.
Work-life balance, for me, isn’t about dividing every day perfectly between work and play.
It’s about making sure work doesn’t swallow the woman doing the work.
Clock Out and Come Back to Yourself
That is exactly why I created my newest Still Becoming Wellness guide:
CLOCK OUT, COME BACK TO YOU
A Work-Life Balance Reset for Women Who Carry a Lot
This 34-page digital guide + workbook grew directly from my own experiences with work, responsibility, stress, boundaries, rest and learning how important it is to create space for yourself.
It includes practical reflections and worksheets to help you look at what is draining you, where work may be following you home, what boundaries you may need and how you can begin creating a healthier rhythm between your professional life and your actual life.
Because you shouldn’t have to wait until you’re completely exhausted before giving yourself permission to rest.
You can be ambitious and need quiet.
You can be dependable and have boundaries.
You can love your career and still look forward to clocking out.
And you can care deeply about what you do without allowing what you do to become all that you are.
Your job is part of your life. It is not your entire life.
So when the workday is finished, give yourself permission to close the laptop, put down the phone, breathe a little deeper and come back to the woman underneath all those responsibilities.
Clock out.
Come back to you. 💜
Still Becoming Wellness
Stronger. Healthier. Happier. Still Becoming.
This article reflects my personal experience and is for educational and informational purposes. It is not a substitute for individualized medical or mental-health care.
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