Look after yourself

When you are committed to helping others – and to getting the enormous satisfaction that brings – it can be easy to forget to look after yourself as comprehensively as you might like. It’s a trap we’ve all fallen into and it can take an alarmingly long amount of time to become aware of. I’m writing this post to share with you that I feel I’ve reached such a conclusion recently. It’s taken me a good few weeks and an accumulated number of wake-up calls to realise it, but a couple of days ago I found a moment when I was able to step back and see that things weren’t as I would like them. There have been many things pulling on my time and many concerns which have kept me from working at 100%. Putting all of my strength and vitality into helping my clients has become more challenging of late. There has been no time left for me to rest properly and to recharge.

So, earlier this week I walked out into the countryside, into the late afternoon sunshine, and I took an hour out to figure how I could get through this challenging time. And I listened to myself in the same way that I would sit down and listen to one of my clients and I reasoned that I needed to break away from my work for a while. I plan to use my time to be with those that I love the most – to help them at a time when they need me and, once I have achieved that, to take a little time out for myself. I’ve been caring for my father for a while now, but I have only been able to give him half of my attention, and I know that he needs more than that. And I have deprived others close to me of time they need with me and that I need with them. Once I’d decided that this was what I needed to do, everything suddenly seemed very much clearer and the load I’ve been carrying felt much, much lighter.

With so many of my regular clients away with summer holidays right now, it seems like the best opportunity to take time out. The downside is that I won’t be able to make myself available to those clients who are around and would like to get hold of me. For that I am really sorry, but I know this is the thing I need to do right now. I will be able to return fully re-energised and push on with my work – both with those whose journey has begun with me already and with those who were hoping to be in touch with me to start theirs.

So, I hope you can all bear with me during this short time away. I’ll be putting the time to good use and am already feeling incredibly positive about some of the fresh challenges I will be coming back to.

I’ll be returning to work on Monday September 19th. Rest assured I’ll be back fully ready to go again in three weeks. Take care of yourselves while I’m away.