I've mentioned that my job often brings me a lot of anxiety. It's usually worst on a Sunday night and a Monday morning, but it varies depending on what's going on in the week. I don't have all the answers, but I thought I'd write a post on how I deal with it, and what I do to make the worst days a little bit less miserable. If you don't enjoy your job and you find that not only do you hate Mondays, but you hate Sundays too because you spend the whole day anticipating Monday, then have a read and maybe one of these strategies might work for you too!
1. Make Sunday a Funday
Sitting around on a Sunday and watching the clock is no good. Plan something nice to do on a Sunday so that you can get lost in an activity and take your mind off work for a while. My favourite thing to do on a Sunday is go out for a roast with my boyfriend. I might have a nice glass of red wine with it, and I always get pudding. We have quality time together which I love, and we get lost in conversation for hours. If we don't go for a roast we might have some friends over to ours for dinner, or we might just get some chocolate, put on our comfy clothes and watch a good movie. It doesn't have to be much, it just has to be something!
Of course, at some point you're going to have to stop pretending that Monday doesn't exist and get ready for work. You can't avoid it completely. If you do, you'll find it doesn't stop the anxiety, it just delays it. You end up having more to do on Monday morning, making it a stressful get up and a negative start to your day. So prepare to have a good day! Today, I made some banana pancakes that I'm going to put in the toaster for breakfast tomorrow morning and top with fresh fruit, yoghurt and honey. It's all in the fridge, ready to go. I've made my lunch for tomorrow - an avocado and butter bean roll in a nice big brioche bun that looks delicious. As you can probably tell, food is very much the key to my heart! But it can be anything. You could do your hair in the evening so you know you'll look good (and therefore feel good) tomorrow. You could put out your favourite work outfit. Trust me, it might just be something small, but it gives you a little something to smile about. Instead of sitting here feeling miserable this evening, I am actually looking forward to getting up tomorrow to eat my yummy pancakes for breakfast!
2. Beat the Monday Blues
It helps to have something nice planned for after work on Monday to look forward to. It's not always possible, but again, it doesn't have to be much. Maybe you're going to treat yourself to a jacuzzi and sauna at the gym after work. Maybe you're going to pop over to see a friend or family member for a couple of hours. Perhaps there's a TV show that you love and you can't wait to watch the next episode - save it for Monday! Having something to look forward to, no matter how trivial, could make all the difference when your alarm goes off in the morning.
I know tomorrow will be a busy day. I have six lessons, and then a staff meeting after school until 5pm. So I'm going to focus on the positives. I've got my tasty breakfast in the morning, I get to see my friends first thing because we all come together for staff briefing, my day will go really quickly because there won't be any time for sitting around, I'll have a nice home made lunch and won't have to waste any time wandering in the canteen looking at the unappetising cheese baguettes in despair, and I'm going to go home as soon as the meeting is done and get ready for rehearsals in the evening for the show I'm going to be in this May. These are the things I'm going to remind myself of in the morning.
3. Abolish the Anxiety
I've put this one last, because it's important to try the preventative strategies first. Sometimes, it doesn't matter what we do, we just can't shake that sick feeling we get when it's time to turn the light out on Sunday night. Sometimes the dreaded alarm sounds on Monday morning and no matter how hard we try, we can't think positively because the reality is, we have to go to work and we just don't want to! We have to acknowledge the anxiety, and deal with it... how?
I keep my favourite big cosy blanket by my bed. The first thing I do after I get up in the morning is wrap this around me. I find it a comfort to know I can get out of bed but still be warm and cosy until I'm feeling ready to get dressed. I go into the bathroom so that I don't wake up my boyfriend, and I look in the mirror and take some big, deep breaths. I count to 8 on the in breath, and 10 on the out breath. I repeat this as many times as I feel I need to. I tell myself "you can do this". It sounds cheesy, but it's a cliché because it works. Then I get ready for work, tackling one thing at a time. I try not to think ahead, just focusing on the task at hand.
It's hard getting out of bed in the morning for a job you don't enjoy. It's important to remind yourself that things will get better. I know a lot of teachers who are finding things tough right now, who feel trapped in the profession. You must try to take one day at a time, and remember that if you are unhappy, you have the power to make a change. The only thing getting me through this term right know is the fact that it'll be over soon.
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