Finding your Work/Life Balance

It can be hard in our busy lives to find the illusive cliché of a work life balance. In some professions where our daily lives focus on care and support and striving to make a positive difference, holding the emotions and difficulties of the lives of others, (whilst juggling our own families, old or young and of varying needs) can take its toll. This makes it all the more important to look after ourselves, take a breath and find our own balance.

Self-care is a vital aspect of work-life balance. It helps to prevent burnout and promotes overall well-being.  It is important to schedule self-care into your weekly routine and stick to it, just as you would with any other obligation.  This helps to prioritize your own well-being and ensures that you have the energy and focus to tackle work tasks and support those around you.

At PLP we have a diverse team of Educational Psychologists, Counsellors, Therapists, Speech and Language Therapists, Family Learning Mentors and school-based Learning Mentors, providing a wide range of services and support to our schools and their children and families. In our daily work lives we find ourselves dashing between venues and switching between what we deliver – constantly thinking on our feet.  It’s important that we try to take regular breaks, things as simple as taking a short walk, stretching, or stepping away from work for a few minutes to help to prevent burnout and provide an opportunity to recharge and refocus.

We are blessed with the wonders of nature all around us, from sea to countryside. This provides the perfect backdrop for unwinding and leisure time. In addition to its mental health benefits, being outside in nature has been shown to improve physical health as well. Studies have found that exposure to nature can lower blood pressure, reduce stress, and boost the immune system.

We all have lives beyond our professions, along with juggling our family lives we are a varied bunch with diverse ways of striving to achieve that ‘work/life’ balance. Here is a window into some of the things we do…

• Musical theatre (taking part and watching)
• Amateur and semi-professional theatre productions
• Pottery and painting
• Walking on Dartmoor
• Hiking the pilgrimage Trails of Camino in Northern Spain and the Cornish Celtic Way
• We have brave souls who get into the freezing cold seas and rivers to swim or wallow
• Being by the sea and walking in the woods
• Baking
• Reading
• Walking our dogs
• Running
• Swimming
• Playing musical instruments and listening to music
• Tennis and Pickleball
• Exploring the southwest on motorbikes
• Yoga and meditation
• Gardening and ‘allotmenting’
• Sewing
• Boating and fishing
• Spending time with family and friends
• Volunteering
• Canal boating
• Climbing and bouldering
• Hockey
• Gym goers and Clubbercise, a dance-based exercise in the dark with glow sticks – no gin involved!

What we know and have learnt over our many years of supporting children and their families in the best way we can, is that we also need to look after ourselves.  Whether you are a parent, carer, member of school staff or another multi-agency professional and want to do the best for the children we care for, looking after ourselves is crucial.

Look forward to seeing you on the tennis court, coast path, dance floor….!