The Holes in Your Cup

One common metaphor in the world of wellness is that you cannot pour from an empty cup. It is a way that we encourage people to think about prioritizing their wellness. If you want to be a good health care provider, a good parent, a good partner it requires you to give of yourself, but you cannot do that if you have depleted your resources and have nothing to give. But often we put the emphasis on refilling the cup through exercise, mindfulness, and other acts of self-care without taking time to assess through what holes our water is draining in our cup that leave it near empty to begin with. 

Krissy Brady, noted health and wellness writer, recently reflected on 12 everyday phenomena that, despite being considered “normal” may be contributing to our sense of burnout. She notes that feeling drained has become the status quo which leaves us overexerting ourselves just to get through the necessities of the day.  We can take a step toward wellness by looking out for some of these common things that are emptying our cup, before taking time to refill it. These things include 

  • consuming emotionally charged television shows and news
  • waiting too long between meals
  • working at a messy desk
  • planning too far in advance
  • having too many tabs open
  • taking calls right away
  • leaving off in the wrong spot
  • slouching
  • shallowing breathing
  • letting little tasks pile up     
  • too much light at night
  • applying advice to yourself that does not apply

How many of these apply to you? Learn more about each problem and what you can do to fix them by reading Ms. Brady’s full article 12 Mindless Habits That Are Secretly Exhausting You.