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Ever Feel Guilty Taking Time to Run to the Bathroom?

Tara Wilken
3 min readApr 13, 2021

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Let alone taking time off…

Photo by Tara

Back to back meetings or a crazy schedule, can often leave you feeling like you don’t even have a moment to breathe let alone time to run to the restroom.

It’s no wonder then we feel guilty about taking time off.

We’ve built a culture, especially in the US where any time spent not working is considered “not productive”.

But constantly trying to be productive actually leads to less productivity not more.

Forbes has a great post on how much productively we are actually losing.

The article didn’t mention the vicious cycle of feeling stressed and guilty for taking time off, which also impacts productivity, but more importantly your well-being.

Because you’ve been on this never ending cycle for years, it becomes even harder to manage your guilt.

Which then of course leads to more guilt which leads to more stress and so the cycle continues.

With 2020 behind us, but so many of us still unable to venture out to travel safely it’s even more important for your well-being to use your some of your PTO/vacation time.

So how do you use your PTO guilt-free?

You have to start small.

  • Take a bathroom break.

Spend an extra 10 seconds looking in the mirror and let your shoulders relax.

The why: Letting your shoulders relax, helps your whole body relax. When you are in a relaxed state it’s harder to feel guilty.

  • Take a 2–3 minute break to stand in the kitchen as you refill your coffee/tea/water.

Take 3 deep breaths and slowly exhale. Allow your shoulders to relax.

The why: 3 deep breaths is a great way to lower your stress. Lowering stress is a great way to lower guilt.

  • Schedule and take a half day off.

Shut the computer down and refrain from checking work email until the next morning. If possible try to get out of the house.

The why: You are creating small wins for yourself. Making it easier to repeat in the future.

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Tara Wilken
Tara Wilken

Written by Tara Wilken

Well-Being Curator. Empowering high achievers with easy, practical self-care resources. So you can spend time with people who matter. https://www.tarawilken.com

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