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as featured in Newsday, March 4, 2001
Seven Ways to Nourish Yourself at Work - Without Eating a Thing
by Holly Anne Shelowitz, Holistic Health Counselor
- Even when you're working on a heavy-duty project, allow yourself to take a break. Take a quick walk outside to get air and put yourself in a different environment. Five or 10 minutes away will give you fresh energy to bring back to your work.
- Give yourself a mini-massage. Reach up and massage your neck, shoulders, scalp, temples. It relieves pressure and brings new blood flow -- and energy.
- Have plants on or near your desk, along with other objects you found in nature. This can be visually delicious. They represent fresh, clean air and consciously or unconsciously help you see there's a bigger world going on out there in addition to your own defined workplace.
- Have photos of people you love and places you feel good about. And rotate them every three months or so, so you'll still get a kick from them.
- Check out aromatherapy oils and choose one you really like -- lavender is a good choice if you're in doubt. It's so calming. For more of a lift, try peppermint, spearmint, rosemary or eucalyptus. You can put one drop in your hand, rub your hands together and breathe in the scent. It's so rejuvenating. (Keep away from your eyes though.) Or, keep a lovely smelling sachet in your desk drawer and open when you need a whiff.
- If your workplace allows it, bring in a headset and listen to music that will enhance your productivity. Something calming, perhaps, in the background.
- Start establishing boundaries. If colleagues try to talk you into having a piece of birthday cake, treat it in a lighthearted way and say, "No, why don't you eat it?" Or put it a little stronger and say, "Thank you so much, but I'm not going to have that now," no explanation needed. With a good buddy you might say, "I realize that when I eat too much sugar I don't sleep well, I get fatigued and I don't feel my best. So I'm not going to eat it now and I hope you'll support me."
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