I have struggled with anxiety all my life. Fortunately, I have learned skills to help my deal with it and most people who know me don’t have any idea that this is a struggle for me. Those closet to me have seen it when I have not been doing a good job of self-care but I try to be more self-aware and head those off.
One way I do that is through do nothing days. My willpower is strong and I have strengthened it over the years in order to overcome the anxiety and do the things I need and want to do in life.
However, like any other resource it gets depleted and needs to recharge. One of the ways I do that is by do nothing days. On a do nothing day I only do what I feel like doing. That may be something productive but more often than not it involves a bathrobe, TV, and video games. I used to get down on myself about those days. I have so much I want to do in life and those do nothing days felt like a waste but one day I realized the value of them.
I was always my most energized and productive the day after one of the do nothing days. It was not a lazy day but a day for recharging just like our phones, we need recharging from time to time too. I still have to remind myself from time to time of their value but I am begining to embrace them as an important part of the cycle of my life.