If there is one thing we all could use, it’s a break.
Think about it – how often do you actually spend each day with yourself, clearing your mind of your worries and genuinely recharging. Sleep doesn’t count. For many, the answer is, “What? That’s a thing?”.
Between work, family, the day-to-day domestic grind, finance and this skyrocketing inflation, we’ve got a lot on our plates. In this list, we’ve grouped marriages with ‘family’. But, we know that our most intimate relationships highly influence all other areas of our lives.
We also know that self-care, including taking meaningful and intentional breaks from our everyday, is essential to our well-being. But why not our marriages? Maybe because our marriages are so central to our lives, we don’t know what taking a healthy and loving break in marriage could look like.
No, I’m not talking about separation (although, for some couples, this could be beneficial under the right circumstances). I’m talking about taking a break from your marital stresses.
Here’s how:
- Agree with your spouse (or alone if you have to) that you will mindfully disengage from your marital stresses, similar to how you disengage from work when taking a vacation.
- Choose a time when you will allow yourself to stress, worry, ruminate, and be frustrated.
- When the time is up, clear your mind and move on to living your life until the next session.
- When you’re mind is clear and free from distractions, tackle those problems head-on, because avoiding what stresses us is one sure way to make it worse.
- The goal is to practice this compartmentalization technique until your marriage feels like a vacation. when you’ve reached this stage, you’re taking mindful breaks to feel all the unpleasant emotions related to your marital stressors, packing them away until you’re clear-headed enough to effectively problem solve, and enjoying wedded bliss the rest of the time.
The reality is that you need breaks to be at your best and enjoy life the way it deserves to be enjoyed. You cannot do this when you are constantly burdened with worries and stress.
Give yourself a break. It’ll be okay. You deserve this.
Give it a try, and let me know how it works – my inbox is always open.
P.S. If you have already tried this and are looking for more intensive help to restore your marriage, head to my website to learn more about my marriage restoration programs.
Happily ever after is in your future. Sometimes the path just gets a little foggy. Help is available.
