With today’s fast-paced lifestyle and consumer driven society, the pressure is on not only to buy more things, but to do more too. It’s little wonder that your mind ends up frazzled and the days never seem long enough to fit in everything that you’ve committed to. With work, running a home and balancing family life too, it can sometimes be a little overwhelming to try and keep all of the plates spinning, or else risk have them come crashing down around you. If all of this sounds a little familiar, then perhaps you are close to experiencing burn out.
The top signs of impending burn out are: exhaustion, feeling disconnected, feeling hopeless and finding everyday tasks overwhelmingly boring and useless. It differs from stress in that the signs of stress are usually physical- muscle aches, headaches and loss of appetite. Burn out on the other hand is usually more emotionally damaging. Therefore you might find yourself detaching from those around you and becoming more introvert than is usual for you. It’s always easier to try and prevent burn out than it is to cure it, so do look out for signs of mental and emotional exhaustion and make sure that you give yourself a break. Sometimes, you can be your own worst enemy in taking on too many commitments and leaving little to no time to do things for yourself. This is never a good idea, so it’s wise to limit your engagements to a few different projects or social groups at a time, so that there is room in the week to take a hard earned rest too.
Rest is very important to both the mind and the body, and can aid in the body’s healing process and boost your mental concentration. Therefore try to get in the recommended minimum of 8 hours of sleep each night to allow yourself to recharge, ready for the following day’s events. What better excuse for a cup of tea and an early night do you need?
The perfect way to engage in utter relaxation is of course with a spa break. This gives you time to switch off from the outside world and just focus on yourself- something you can rarely do in today’s hectic world. There are many hotel spas dotted all over the country, but London has some ultra-indulgent ones to offer. Think of the plushest interiors, highly skilled therapists, fantastic spa facilities and treatment creams of the highest quality and you’ll be close to picturing the Montcalm hotel spa. Whether it’s a much-needed facial to restore and rebalance your skin, or one of the soothing full body massage spa treatments to knead away your problems that you fancy, you can find them all in London’s best spa hotels.
Once your spa trip has been booked, all that’s left to do is to count down the days until you can switch off and recharge your batteries properly. You mightn’t think that you have the time to spare to even take a spa break, but it is both time and money wisely invested. Once you emerge from the spa fresh faced and glowing, you will be feeling like you can take on the world, and that is absolutely priceless. If you really can’t take time off from work or the family though, booking a single treatment can be just as rewarding. Most spas will allow clients who have treatments booked to use the full spa facilities too, so ensure that you arrive early to maximise your time there. Before and after your treatment, you will be able to take a refreshing swim, sit and think in the sauna or steam room and watch as your cares bubble away in the Jacuzzi. If you’re not much of a water baby though, simply bring along a book or magazine and sit poolside for the perfect way to spend a relaxing afternoon.
Another thing to remember is adhering to spa etiquette. Mobile phones are strictly prohibited in the majority of spas for the sole reason that they are a disturbance, can you imagine being in a deep relaxed state in the middle of getting a massage when your boss calls? Talk about bad timing! So be sure to switch off your phone and keep it safely in your locker. Better still; leave it at home for the day- you’ll be amazed just how well people can cope without you for a few hours.
Another thing to remember is that therapists usually have a busy schedule of clients, so do try to be on time for your appointment. Arriving late not only means that you’ll have to hurriedly get changed, but it could also result in your treatment being cut short, which would be a total shame, not to mention a waste of money. There will probably be another client waiting for their treatment when yours is complete, so try to be considerate with timing. Although don’t feel you have to rush out after your treatment. There are usually a few treatment rooms meaning that you can lie still in the quiet, ambient room to relax for a few minutes before getting dressed. Nothing about a spa day should be rushed, so to avoid feeling hurried, allow plenty of time to travel to the hotel.
After your spa break, you will be feeling on top form, but don’t let that be an excuse for over-committing to things again, or else you’ll only wind up back at square one. Instead set aside a night each week to do a spa evening at home. Light some scented candles, take a long hot bubble bath and massage your skin with some heavy moisturiser to trick yourself into thinking that you’ve just emerged from the spa again. You’ll feel amazing and smell good too, and if you use a few drops of essential oil in your bath, you’ll be drifting off to get your 8 hours sleep in no time.
