Having a desk job can come with a high amount of stress that can wreck havoc in your body. Use this post as a guide to help you learn some simple self-care practices to combat stress and promote inner peace in the midst of your busy workday.

Just Breathe

An important, and often overlooked, self care tip is to simply get in the habit of doing an intentional breathing practice throughout your day. Yes, you are constantly breathing in oxygen on autopilot, but intentional breathing is much more deliberate – the goal is to connect your breath to your mind to calm that inner chaos. This takes practice, but once mastered, can be a great self-care tool to ward off excess workplace stress.

To begin, sit in a comfortable, upright position and breathe naturally. Focus on how your breathing feels and notice how your chest expands as you inhale and how it compresses as you exhale. Do this for about 2 minutes. Next, place your hand on your belly and breathe in with the goal of filling your belly with as much oxygen as it can manage. Hold this breath for 5 seconds and slowly exhale. Repeat for 3 minutes.

Get A Massage

Your body has the tendency to accumulate major kinks and knots from lack of stretching and exercising. It happens to the best of us, and most often when you are required to be at your desk for 35+ hours a week – imagine the toll this takes on your body.

A chair massage is the perfect way to ease your mid-day stress and promote more self-care. A massage chair provided at your workplace is the perfect solution for those sore and achy muscles. Get yourself in the weekly/bi-weekly habit of setting 10 minutes during work to indulge in a quick massage. You’ll get a good roll and knead session for your back and neck and be ready to jump into the rest of your day.

Use Proper Body Mechanics

This self-care practice is an easy way to rejuvenate yourself. When you become more aware of how to sit correctly, and become more in tune with your body, you miss out on unnecessary future pains. Some easy habits to incorporate when working the desk life includes:

• Sitting on your sits-bones instead of your sacrum.
• Keeping your shoulders back and your chest lifted.
• Keep the mouse and keyboard close to your body to avoid “reaching” forward with arms.
• Take frequent breaks! Every hour go for a quick walk and a give yourself a stretch session.

We all work in some capacity to provide a better life for our families and ourselves. It’s often tough to prioritize self-care practices in the workplace when there seems to be a million and one things to take care of on your to do list. Truth be told, it is vital to practice self-care both inside and outside of the workplace to ensure that you can perform optimally and enjoy a better quality of life.

Contributor: Kateria Wynn