I have been exhausted these past few weeks. I have pushed myself forward and onwards despite the signs of needing to rest. I have had support and encouragement to rest, take it easy and look after myself from others but realised I was part of the problem – not all of it, but part of it. We often know things are getting worse but refuse to stop or allow ourself to rest; I always think “If I just do a bit more it well get easier…” but I know I too have to take responsibility in being firm to myself and saying “no”

How often do you neglect your basic needs, work harder and “just do that extra bit” at the expense of your own health? I hold my hand up and know I do it often. Part of self care is recognising no matter how fast we go and how much we do, it will never end, so pace yourself, recharge and slow down.

Starting small with just making sure you take a few moments each day to do something for yourself and building upwards to nurture your own needs is important. There are of course many factors in the workplace that need addressing by others and a wider audience, but we can start with ourselves and start small.

It can feel really uncomfortable resting whilst chaos and pressure is all around us and the first few attempts will be a matter of force to sit still. Take some time to think about what small thing will you do to look after yourself? How will you keep it going and not give up on yourself?

Here’s a few tips on keeping well in the workplace, if you like my work, you can become a sparkles member and access over 300 illustrations here or find some pieces at my shop here