So, last night I didn’t get to bed till 4:30. My brain is like fried eggs today and, therefore, I am hereby declaring it a mental health day!
Do you ever take mental health days? What do you do for yourself on that day?
Behind The Butter
Mental Health Day
Chelsea (Chelsea's Chew and Run Fun)
August 10, 2010 at 1:04 pmI’m so sorry to hear you had a rough night’s sleep! I know how debilitating that can be. Enjoy your mental health day, get some rest, and hopefully you’ll feel more renewed!
jenna
August 10, 2010 at 1:07 pmbrilliant idea! 🙂 too bad my day is already 1/2 over! :-/ maybe i’ll declare an extended mental health day through tomorrow! 🙂
I hope you are relaxing and enjoying some comforting eats! 🙂
Laura
August 10, 2010 at 1:07 pmI’m in dire need of a mental health day today. I’m thinking your chocolate chip cookie recipe will do the trick, paired with a glass (or bottle) of red. Thanks for the recipe!
Gavi @ GaviGetsGoing!
August 10, 2010 at 1:13 pmI used to take them back in high school when things just got too crazy and stressful. I took one last year (being a teacher was VERY challenging!) and went for a long run, took myself to Whole Foods, and enjoyed the steam room at the gym. Perfection! Enjoy your MHD! 🙂
Beth @ Beth's Journey to Thin
August 10, 2010 at 1:35 pmI take Mental Health Days as needed from work. I don’t get enough PTO to do it as frequently as I need them!!
Heather (Heather's Dish)
August 10, 2010 at 1:35 pmYES! there was a time not too long ago that i just couldn’t bring myself to go to work. if i had gone i would have sat and cried all.day.long. you gotta take time off!
Jess (JessCantCook)
August 10, 2010 at 1:36 pmI love taking a mental health day, the biggest challenge is not filling up your mental health day but trying to do chores and errands! I usually read or do something else relaxing around the house. I might have to borrow Laura’s idea of chocolate chip cookies and red wine 🙂
Jasmine @ Eat Move Write
August 10, 2010 at 1:37 pmI’d say if you were up that late, you’re entitled! My mental health days usually include a good book and a leisure walk with the hubby. There’s nothing better.
Heather
August 10, 2010 at 1:37 pmYes!! Today!! I’m going to work out, clean out my car, clean my room, read a book and get to bed early!! Organization and relaxation is key 🙂
Betherann
August 10, 2010 at 1:43 pmI’m right there with you. May your M.H.D. be restorative and energizing!
Juliann
August 10, 2010 at 1:44 pmMy requirements for a mental health day consist of a good yoga class & some delightful reading material. Ok, fine. A glass of wine is usually included somewhere in there.
Wine Girl (Kitchen Doesn't Travel)
August 10, 2010 at 1:50 pmAbout once a quarter I’ll take a random Friday or a Monday off as a “mental health day” and a nice long weekend. I purposefully don’t plan anything, especially not to go anywhere. Usually on those days I sleep late, read, and catch up on little projects around my house…and there is always wine. 🙂 I always feel rejuvenated when I know my house and my projects are in order.
Angela (The Lady Loves to Eat)
August 10, 2010 at 1:52 pmMental health days are so good! I should take them more often!
Jessica @ How Sweet
August 10, 2010 at 1:52 pmMental health days are necessary! I lay around, watch chick flicks, read chick lit and trashy magazines. Enjoy!
Mama Pea
August 10, 2010 at 1:52 pmToday is a “mental health day” for me too! I am cleaning out the playroom, organizing the bookshelf and folding laundry. Gotta get all that “stuff” out!
Marilou @ Mostly Healthy
August 10, 2010 at 1:53 pmI love “Mental Friday Night” where I sit on my couch in sweat and don’t talk to anyone for a good 12 hours.
Molly
August 10, 2010 at 1:54 pmIm all about sleeping in, working out, and not feeling an ounce of guilt for just being lazy 🙂
Emily
August 10, 2010 at 1:56 pmJenna,
I washed my lentils and then put them in a pot with water. By the time the water started boiling it was orange! Is this supposed to happen?
Thanks! Emily
mindy @ just a one girl revolution.
August 10, 2010 at 1:56 pmI highly advocate for mental health days! Mine usually consist of laziness: movies, napping, reading, relaxing.
R @ Learning As I Chop
August 10, 2010 at 1:58 pmThat picture reminds me of Smithson’s Spiral Jetty. Beautiful!
Jes
August 10, 2010 at 1:58 pmI will take a mental health day and just do whatever i want… Whether it be renting and watching 3 disks of Gossip Girl back to back, making me some new jewelry, boating all day, or just sitting on the dock reading… I love those days… I actually took one this coming friday, now if only i knew what to do!
The Wife of a Dairyman
August 10, 2010 at 1:58 pmMental health days are sometimes much needed. I hope you enjoy yours and extend it through tomorrow if needed. Hope you feel rejuvinated soon 🙂
Bethany @ More Fruit Please
August 10, 2010 at 2:04 pmI call my mental health days “ketchup” days since in elementary school, we used to have “catch up” days where we could get caught up on all the things we’ve fallen behind on in other areas of our lives.
Amanda
August 10, 2010 at 2:15 pmI need to start declaring those too! Especially when I am feeling out of it at the beginning of the week! It would probably make the rest of the week MUCH less of a struggle!
Michelle @ Turning Over a New Leaf
August 10, 2010 at 2:16 pmI definitely advocate mental health days. Most the sick days I’ve used in the past 16 months working here were mental health days for me. I also call them “Sick [and tired of my job]” days, but not out loud. 😉
I ususally sleep in, take noonday showers, get housework done, watch TV, and work on the blog.
I realized this week that it’s been a *while* since I’ve taken a sick day. I think all the days I had to be off for doctors’ appointments and being out of town earlier in the summer and the fact that I used more leave than I had available and having to deduct extra from my paycheck for two months straight has scared me away from using my leave for a while.
Jess @ The Stuffed Horse
August 10, 2010 at 2:24 pmThat photo is beautiful! Enjoy your day of rest.
MC
August 10, 2010 at 2:30 pmmental health day to me means taking a day off work, sleeping in, making a nice breakfast, and drinking my coffee slowly 🙂 then enjoying tv for the rest of the afternoon on the couch!
Renee
August 10, 2010 at 2:32 pmlove love love mental health days! I actually took a mental health week last week – a staycation 🙂 it was glorious, and it really helped recharge my batteries and refocus. highly recommend it!
lisa
August 10, 2010 at 2:32 pmI just found your blog today, and really enjoy it. Glad I found you here…
Mental heath days are really important, and in some European countries, people can actually take a legit mental health day from work. It’s healthy to take a day off from work and anything that requires a lot of thinking and analyzing. Hope you’re feeling rested.
Katherine
August 10, 2010 at 2:38 pmYes I do! Tomorrow I am going to a spa for a mental health day. My family is coming into town this weekend and graduate school, round 2 starts next week so stress abounds. Maybe its like a preventative mental health day?
Beth
August 10, 2010 at 2:39 pmI love mental health days and think that they are so important. I don’t take them very often though because at my company we don’t have “sick days” just vacation. When I do take a mental health day I usually end up cleaning, cooking and getting caught up on things around the house and that always make me feel so much better!! Enjoy your day 🙂
eatmovelove
August 10, 2010 at 2:45 pmUmmm dream about places like in that picture LOL!!
Lisa
August 10, 2010 at 2:54 pmI love mental health days. I’ve needed a few lately. 😉
sarah (this is it)
August 10, 2010 at 3:14 pmI have yet to take a day off from work as a mental health day…not at that point yet.
Tracey @ I'm Not Superhuman
August 10, 2010 at 3:34 pmYa know, sometimes you just need some time away. The best mental health days include tea, a book, and fresh air.
Camille
August 10, 2010 at 3:40 pmGirl, I take a mental health day about once a week. It keeps me sane!
Annie@stronghealthyfit
August 10, 2010 at 3:57 pmHope everything’s ok! Mental health days are completely necessary once in awhile 🙂 Take care of yourself.
Amanda @ Cakes and Ale
August 10, 2010 at 4:18 pmNo, but I feel like I need one! I would love a day to just be completely alone. I love my husband, but alone time is so important, and I haven’t had that in awhile… things have just been too crazyballs!
Mom
August 10, 2010 at 4:41 pmDreaming about the Labyrinth at Miraval! And a glass of wine!
Mom
August 10, 2010 at 6:21 pmOh. And yoga is a huge part of that day as well!
Corey - The Runner's Cookie
August 10, 2010 at 4:49 pmEveryone needs one once in a while! I think it makes you more productive in the long run.
amanda
August 10, 2010 at 5:17 pmUgggh lately every day has been a mental health day!! I take care of this by watching a silly movie or reading a good book.
Staceyhttp://stacey-healthylife.blogspot.com/
August 10, 2010 at 5:39 pmWow sounds like you need to relaxation and sleep.
Susan
August 10, 2010 at 5:44 pmYes sometimes, I get a pedicure, and I do nothing that needs to get done, and I try not to think about all the things I should be getting done…and the next day when I back at it, I try not to feel like I wasted a day or quilty for not accomplishing.
Sarah (Oc2Seattle)
August 10, 2010 at 5:51 pmLet’s hear it for mental health days! I generally spend mine holed up with a book I’ve been wanting to read, but sometimes a spa day is required 😉
Jo
August 10, 2010 at 5:54 pmWhen i was in High school my parents would give my brother and I one “mental health” day per school year. This was the one day would could stay home or do whatever we wanted. I always thought this made them great parents.
Jen
August 10, 2010 at 6:01 pmI need mental health days at least twice a year. I call in sick, spend some time at the fishing pier just looking at the lake and the mountains, then go home and watch a movie that has talking animals (it’s a toss-up between Homeward Bound and Milo and Otis for my favorite). Good for you for taking a day for yourself!
Diana @ frontyardfoodie
August 10, 2010 at 6:02 pmI need these like every day now that I’m so pregnant!
Okay, the first thing I do is sleep in a little. THEN I take a long walk. I mean a long one. On this walk I would hit up the local coffee shop, the library and my community garden. I always hit that up whenever I walk since it’s only a few blocks from my house.
THEN I make a fabulous lunch and munch at my leisure out doors. After lunch I’d probably work on some super urgent projects around the house like build that darned crib.
Rebecca @ How the Cookies Crumble
August 10, 2010 at 6:08 pmMental health days are crucial. I took yesterday off work and it was great. I slept in, went to yoga, ran, read by the pool and spent my whole evening watching Gossip Girl on DVD!
Heather @ Sugar & Spice
August 10, 2010 at 6:26 pmMental health days are soo important. I hope it helps and I hope you get a good night sleep tonight!
Nora@LifeLifeEatRight
August 10, 2010 at 6:44 pmJenna– you more than deserve a day off!! Take care, eat well, drink wine, laugh and relax! …..make sure that good company and chocolate are involved in the mix….preferably in Almanzo and cookie form. 🙂
Lindsay
August 10, 2010 at 6:58 pmI tired that Zuchinni Pizza and it was awesome! Thank you so much because I can always use another zuchinni recipe 🙂
John
August 10, 2010 at 7:11 pmSometimes I’ll golf but most times I will hole up in the house and avoid ALL outside influences.
Cristin
August 10, 2010 at 7:20 pmThey are a necessity!!
Jackie (Peaces of Earth)
August 10, 2010 at 7:41 pmMental health days are SO necessary. Reminds me that I haven’t had one in way too long. To me they must include yoga, vitamin D, lounging, lounging while soaking in vitamin D, and cooking lots of yummy food.
A Teenage Gourmet (Sami)
August 10, 2010 at 7:48 pmMom & I use that same term, “mental health day,” when I take a day off from school. 🙂
Suzanne de Cornelia
August 10, 2010 at 8:18 pmMental Health Days: Fresh flowers, music, Rom-Com movie or Chick-Lit book, being near water, sit in the Carmel Mission or somewhere beautiful like that, maybe veg on sofa with book, or cook something really good, go out with or visit a friend, go somewhere haven’t been, paint a watercolor, organize a closet, get a mani-pedi/haircut, go to pet adoption place and play with the cats. Gather a bunch of things to give to homeless or food bank. Count blessings, literally write down everything have to be grateful for. Depends on mood. But we all need them to recharge.
Dawn
August 10, 2010 at 9:00 pmI love mental health days! Every now and then they’re good for you, for sure. I do whatever I want – if I want to get things done? I get ’em done. If I want to lay around all day and nap? I do that. The important thing is, regardless of what I do or don’t do, I’m not allowed to feel guilty about any of it. They’re fantastic. I hope you enjoyed yours!
Danielle
August 11, 2010 at 12:54 amI am actually a full-supporter of Mental Health Days and I understand their complete necessity, but I always feel bad to personally take them because so many people acknowledge such needs or allow themselves such breaks. I’ve been taking a couple of Physical Health Days, which are a ton more obvious, but they’re helping slow down my thoughts and de-stress me too. Hope you enjoy yours 🙂
Shannon
August 11, 2010 at 5:41 amI love mental health days! Usually I sleep an extra two hours, have some coffee, watch Mad Men, and go grocery shopping. I get so much done and feel really productive but also relaxed! That’s important.
Katie
August 11, 2010 at 6:16 ammental health days rock. i wake up at my normal time, i read in bed, shower by 11, eat lunch, head out for some errands that i wouldn’t normally get around to for another 3 weeks, maybe get a manicure/pedicure or some other form of pampering (RETAIL THERAPY!!), and then come home and cook a big yummy dinner and curl up in bed and catch up on my dvr. i love mental health days.
Nichole
August 11, 2010 at 6:38 amFantastic idea. Just breathe. I need one, and will take you up on this offer!
MichellePC
August 11, 2010 at 7:10 amI haven’t taken a mental health day – ever. But I know if I did, I would be a lot less stressed with work, etc. Your post just slapped me with the reality that I (as well as everyone) deserves a mental health day every once and a while! Thanks for the reminder – hope you enjoyed your day!
Kaylan
August 11, 2010 at 7:54 amI think I have heard you talk about God before, do you find that renewing your mind with scripture and His promises ever help to put worldly things in perspective to eternity and His promises?
Laurel
August 11, 2010 at 8:53 amOne of the many wonderful things about my mom was that she would let me and my sister miss school once a semester for a “mental health day”. We’d always use it to do all those things that you were never allowed to do: cake for breakfast, skiing on a school day, whatever we felt like! So take this mental health day and try to be a little bit “bad”.
Kimberly Lee
August 11, 2010 at 10:11 amI try to take a mental health day at least once a month. On those days, I curl up on my couch with a blanket, a cup of my favorite tea/coffee/beverage (depending on my mood), a few magazines, and a couple good books. I read until my eyes get heavy, then I nap, then read some more.
It is a wonderful way to recharge!
Rachel
August 11, 2010 at 10:47 amReading without guilt. I read a lot anyway, but there’s often a nagging feeling at the back of my brain that I should be cleaning, or seeing friends, or exercising, or cooking. On a mental health day, I allow myself to sit in my most comfortable chair and read an entire book without stopping. And then I feel great! (And also a little stiff from not moving for all that time.)