How to Let Work Go After a Long Day

“We all experience long workdays; it’s almost an inevitability!  How we choose to unwind can be the difference between perpetuating the burnout versus being a bit more relaxed.  I like to encourage people to find activities that are energizing rather than numbing.  Some people lean into self medication with substances, alcohol, binge watching shows, or even “doom scrolling” on their phones.  The problem with these methods is that they numb rather than relax; once they end, we are left with the same thoughts and feelings about the day. 

 Instead, find something that helps you feel better, such as movement, meditation, or even talking to friends or partners about why the day was so hard.  You would be surprised how this can strengthen your emotional connection with yourself and others!  Always remember that by the time you get home, you are in a new state of being, so take the time to notice where you are rather than where you’ve been!”

— Michael Anthony, LCSW

There are certainly a lot of options we have when we make it home at the end of our workday. Not all of them really make us feel better. 

The question is not whether an activity is “productive.” The question is whether it actually helps us recover.

With the right tools, we can actually achieve a calmer state of being in any situation. Even at the end of a long work day, and especially when we feel overwhelmed. 

What Types Of Depression Treatment Can Help With Work Stress?

The work of self-care doesn’t stop when you clock in to your day job. In fact, to have lasting success, you need to attend to yourself. If work is so clouded by negative emotion that it feels like a slog through the bog in the fog, then it becomes your job to make it better. 

We think of depression as a condition. We make the mistake of assuming that because depression is not our fault, because it is something that happens to us, that it is something we have no responsibility over. 

• Live a life that makes sense for you. Your routine, your hobbies, and fundamentally your time is yours to do with as you wish. That means you don’t have to live the life that was prescribed to you by your upbringing, your culture, or the well-intentioned advice of your loved ones. 

• Be your authentic self. We want to be kind, but we think that we cannot do it authentically. That our authentic self is so angry and ugly (after years of being locked away) that it can never see the light of day. It is better to be your authentic self (and occasionally risk rejection) than emptily pursue the approval of others behind a mask that will soak up every accolade.

• Don’t give up when things don’t go your way. Part of the human experience is not getting your way. If things aren’t going your way, practice non-attachment and let go of your expectations. You don’t have to like it when things don’t go your way, but you can’t stop trying.  Those who do not adapt risk extinction. When things don’t go your way, trust that you are being led somewhere better. 

What Can I Do For Anxiety Relief When I’m Done With Work? 

Money is what we need to eat, live, survive, and grow. For the unlucky most of us, work is the best way to get it. 

That makes work-related anxiety particularly complicated. “Just quit” isn’t always realistic advice.

Instead, we can begin by asking what happens after work.

What does your body need?

What does your mind need?

What would help you feel like yourself again?

 

• Spend time with a chosen hobby. A hobby is valuable partly because it does not have to accomplish anything. It is a part of your routine because you like it, and the things you like are just as important as the things anybody else likes. Time wasted in enjoyment is time wasted well, and time wasted well is wise and therefore not much of a waste at all.

• Try this meditation. Meditation doesn’t have to be a revelation. It need not be done in silence. You can watch one on YouTube. You can spend even just one minute meditating if you choose to. Meditation can provide a small but meaningful interruption between the world we have just left and the world we are entering. Isn’t that what we’re really looking for when we crave the end of the work day?

• Find an artistic outlet. Art is how humans make sense of what we are. Sometimes what we are at the end of work is someone who needs to sing in the car. Or read a book when they get home instead of browsing Instagram reels on the toilet for thirty minutes. 

How Do I Stop Bringing My Problems From Work Home With Me? 

“One of the symptoms of an approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one’s work is terribly important.”— Bertrand Russell

Work is not the center of the universe, nor is it the center of our lives. Work is a necessity; an immutable fact about the universe which we must accept, but not a friend worth borrowing money to, and certainly not a partner worth loving.

Uncoupling the ways that work impacts the psyche is hard work. Going to therapy can help you gain the right insights, learn the right skills, and ask the right questions. But what can you do right now?

These are the kinds of questions you can ask yourself:

• Do You Need Therapy For Toxic Masculinity? Men are conditioned by society (their parents, their teachers, and especially their employers) to work themselves to barren exhaustion. Do you injure yourself lifting objects that are too heavy to lift alone? Do you feel like you can’t or shouldn’t feel pain or sadness? How does your behavior change when you’re in a group social setting of other men?

• Will Psychedelic Therapy Help Me With Work Stress? Psychedelic therapy has shown immense results for patients who have resisted more traditional treatment methods like talk therapy or psychiatric medicine. Psychedelic therapy is simultaneously innovative and time-tested. There’s a growing body of research that suggests that it is helpful, and sometimes life-changing for patients who otherwise lived in suffering. In Florida, you can now legally receive ketamine-assisted psychotherapy from counselors like Integrative Counsel.  
• What Could You Achieve If You Went To Therapy For ADHD? Being neurodivergent is not just something that happens to people born after 1995; it’s little understood but far more common than we realized until relatively recently. Even in adults. Even your parents. Even your grandparents. How do you do things differently from everyone else? Do you find it hard to keep track of things like your wallet, keys, or phone? Are you often described as eccentric? Do you suspect that you might be neurodivergent? 

“To be able to enjoy leisure rightly is the principle of everything.”—Aristotle

Can Counseling Help Me Stop Being Stressed About Work? 

Yes! Going to the right counselor can help you find a work-life balance that is sustainable and satisfying. But you need to find the counselor who’s right for you. 

And it can feel like there are a thousand obstacles between you and being understood. Even by a professional, perhaps especially by a professional. 

• Being neurodivergent 
• Feeling shame around your feelings, 
• Not thinking we’re worth the money or effort.

These can all make it hard to find that therapist who understands. That’s where we’d like to help.

If you’re feeling stuck on your healing journey, you don’t have to navigate it alone. Our intake specialist will take the time to understand your needs and connect you with a therapist who is the right fit. Schedule your free 15-minute consultation.

Sunny Ebsary is an educator, multi-modal artist, and writer specializing in the intersection of myth and mental health. Sunny’s writing walks the line between poetic and logical, giving readers a chance to interface with the mind and imagination. Sunny’s been putting pen to paper since he  was a child, writing everything from albums, novels, and plays, to essays, interactive games, and of course, many articles! While studying both psychology and writing, he realized his real passion in life was helping others unlock their creative spark. Whether he’s leading a D&D game, directing a production, or diving deep into the brain, you can be sure Sunny will be ushering you toward finding meaning in your life.