Decompressing After Hard Work
After being on the road for twenty days for a project, I find myself having difficulties readjusting to my routines and life back in Los Angeles. I know the value of decompressing after a strenuous period of time but did not realize how hard it would be to simply relax.
The project I was on, Wayfaring, allowed me to travel cross country with a former contestant of Survivor as he experienced a new environment and adventure every single day. As part of the project, I lived in close quarters with twelve other crew members and had obligations such as staying up with the editor to finish the day’s project and to schedule out the day’s itinerary. In the grand scheme of things, traveling twenty days across America on a project, doesn’t compare to other stories I have heard. I have heard of stories where ordinary citizens were living in isolated communities for years and other traveling road shows who have been on the road for longer than we have. But even though their circumstances and situation may be a bit more extreme and perhaps more lengthy than my own, I am witness that culture shock and the difficulty to decompress can affect everyone.
When I returned from my trip, I found myself still moving at a rapid pace, similar to what I was doing when I was on the trip. I felt this pressure for some reason to tie up loose ends in my personal and business life and did not seem to take the time to enjoy the fact that I was back in my bed. This eventually caught up to me sat of last night, as I found myself breaking down a little, not necessarily emotionally but mentally. I found myself lost, annoyed, frustrated that I was as disorganized and disheveled and other characteristics that was not like me. It took me a while during the night but I found myself accepting that it is okay to feel lost and to take things gradually. As I am typing away this morning and slowly getting back into my normal routine, I find myself infinitely much better than I had felt in prior days.
For those of us who have been traveling or been working in a lot of extreme circumstances, I’m here to tell you it is alright to struggle with decompressing after you are finished with your project or adventure. It will take a few moments to re-fuel your fire and to re-assess your life once more. It will take a lot of time and focus to get things back to normal. But use this time to invest in yourself and learn to relax and enjoy life. Don’t worry about falling behind, like I did, and just let things that are worrying you, fall to your waist side and get that pressure off of yourself. The fact that you had just completed a task or adventure is proof enough that you accomplished sometimes and you need to take a moment to reward not only yourself but your mental being as well.
Create & Motivate! 