Have you ever felt guilty when you have some time to relax and recharge? Does it feel indulgent to do activities that you enjoy? Do you struggle with feeling like your schedule must be as busy and hectic as the next person’s? Research shows that an attitude that sees downtime as wasteful leads to less happiness. If you struggle to see relaxation as good, it may lead to greater stress or even depression. Do you see self care as equally important as productivity?
Self Care
Today’s society prioritizes and recognizes productivity and achievements. You can find books, podcasts, etc. that promise increased productivity and meeting your goals. With this emphasis on achievement, it is very easy to see any time that is not productive as a waste of time. However, taking time to unwind and rest is critical for your mental and physical health.
Many call the practice of taking time to relax ‘self care’ in order to help validate and protect the boundaries of rest.
Self care is taking time to do things that may not qualify as productive but promote mental and physical health. It can be exercising, setting healthy boundaries for commitments, a relaxation practice, or enjoying a fun activity. It’s an effort to recognize and make space for activities that allow you to recharge. There is plenty of research which suggests that relaxing has mental and physical health benefits and that it can make us more productive and less stressed. But we find that if people start to believe that it is wasteful, they may end up being more depressed and more stressed.
Relaxation for Mental Health
In a series of studies, researchers examined the effects of a common belief in modern society: that productivity is the ultimate goal and time’s a-wasting if you’re just having fun.
People who most strongly agreed with this belief not only enjoyed free time less, but also reported poorer mental health outcomes. One bright side: Some skeptical people could enjoy fun activities if leisure was part of a larger goal, and not an end in itself. Shifting your mindset to see fun and relaxation as part of your health goals is necessary for you to actually benefit from self care and downtime.
If leisure can be framed as having some kind of productive goal, that helps people who think it is wasteful get some of the same benefits.
Whether you are exercising, watching something, hanging out with friends, or taking time to meditate, if you see it as unnecessary and wasteful, then you won’t benefit in the same way. In fact, you’re more likely to raise your stress, anxiety, and depression while “relaxing.”
Is This Only an American Problem?
The negative view of downtime is not just an American issue. One study, which compared people in the United States, India and France, found that the French were less likely than those in the U.S. and India to believe leisure was wasteful – as is consistent with cultural stereotypes. But for those in France who did disdain leisure, the bad effects were the same. And once you believe that, and internalize the message that leisure is a waste, our results suggest you’re going to be more depressed and less happy, no matter where you live.
The researchers were struck by how the negative views of relaxation affected enjoyment of anything fun, no matter the situation or how short the activity was.
For those who believe downtime is wasteful, it may be helpful to think about the productive ways that individual relaxation activities can serve their long-term goals. In other words, connect each self care activity to something you want to accomplish. Find ways to make fun activities part of a larger goal in your life, think about how it is productive, instrumental and useful.
References:
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/caring-for-your-mental-health
