When the EID holiday was announced, I was immediately excited to find out I had a whole 9 days off from my extremely stressful job! My first question was where was I going to travel and what was I going to do?

Living literally in the middle of the world, I have quick cheap access to some of the most prime travel destinations i’ve always dreamed about. With Africa, Europe and Asia less than a 5 hour plane ride away, I knew this was the perfect time to set out on an adventure. The only problem was….. I had NO energy to plan a trip and didn’t want to spend “travel money.” (unless I was gonna get flewed out by somebody’s fine ass son) That left me pretty much with the only option to have a staycation. Little did I know, this would be one of the most relaxing/fulfilling weeks I’ve had in months!

The stress of work took over majority of my life in the month of May. Although May is my birth month, it didn’t feel like it… With all the dramatic changes to my job, not knowing if my contract will be renewed and applying for several jobs but getting no call backs. I was left feeling extremely drained. For the most part, everyday has been an uphill battle to my faith in the universe that everything will work out for me for the better. After that crazy month of May, I knew I just needed a week with no set in plans…

Heres how it played out

I slept like crazy..

Sometimes all you need is a good ass sleep to feel refreshed. Sleeping is my favorite pass time and my way of feeling completely at peace. Sleeping helps reduce my stress and is one of favorite self care activities. Getting my sleep pattern back on schedule is something I strived to achieve after a stressful couple of weeks. It not only feels great and refreshing it helps me have the energy to get out during the day, do active things, and be engaged with my world.

I read a novel…

Reading provides me comfort and fulfillment. Its my escape from anxiety and a way for me to be in my own little world. Reading an interesting novel fuels my imagination to run wild, It is my alone time where I can relax and forget about my troubles for a peaceful moment. Reading novels to pass the time is a great way for me to exercise my brain.

Caught up with old friends…

Friendships have a major impact on my mental health and well being, it is important that I nurture my friendships as much as I nature myself. I chilled with with friends I hadn’t hung out with for almost a year. It felt lovely to catch up with familiar energy and receive the much needed burst of happiness my spirit was feening for like a crack head. We laughed, had dirty girl talk, sang our hearts out, drank wine and ate till we felt content. I felt secure being around strong women who had no problem checking each other when appropriate, hyping each other up and giving each other encouraging pep talks.

Went to the pool…

I had a fresh orange bikini that was calling my nammeeeee!!! Laying by the pool with a gorgeous view of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque? What more could I ask for?

Ate what I wanted…

I said goodbye to the low carb/ low sugar diet and hello to whatever I wanted to eat and drink. If I was gonna do nothing all week I was definitely going to indulge in my favorite foods! Fries, Ritz Crackers, bottomless drinks and gummy bears, forget the weight I gained, i’ll just work it off!

Refreshed my spirit and goals…

After a month of not seeing much progress in my goals but lots of lessons in life, it was time to refresh. May wasn’t what I planned it to be and though I have no control over certain circumstances in my life, I can still take charge of those aspects of my life I can control. Eating and working out consistently in something that I need in my life to flourish, that weight after turning 30 hits hard when you neglect your body. Combine that with not meeting personal goals and you have a month of very little progress. Im thankful for lessons learned throughout this month but I know its time to get back on the right path to feeling true happiness and inner peace. Having this week of reflection helped me set new goals as well as continue to strive toward compilation of my current goals.

This week was everything I needed  and more!! I was perfectly fine with being extremely lazy. My mental health thanks me for this relaxing week of self care.

Have you ever had to schedule days or weeks of doing nothing?