Time is Health – Nancy

I want to try and start a new proverb this year: Time is not money, time is health.

Time is health.

If you get a couple minutes’ break, use them for stress management, a few simple breathing exercises, then get back to work. If you get 15 minutes, close your eyes for a real rest.

Every work day should have an hour carved out of the middle of it to use to get some good food, enjoy eating it, and give it time to start digesting. Time is health.

Sleeping and waking routines are an important part of keeping healthy. Don’t waste time on television or on late-night email or “productivity”. Time is health.

Going to the gym or going out for a jog or a yoga class is not just one more priority to add to a long list of “shoulds” and “oughts”.

Time is health – what else would I take time for, if not health?

Especially for people wrestling with chronic ill-health, like bipolar and depression, the added burden of productivity can sometimes just be too much. If you have “leisure” time, why aren’t you using it to make more money? What a crazy question. Time is health. Time for exercise, time for sleep, time for cooking good food. Time is not money.

Any kind of time-saving I may do, like driving instead of walking, does not mean that I have to heap some more duties on my already heavy schedule. Time is health. If I can save some time, I can devote it to a few more minutes on breathing exercises or meditation. If I can save some time, I can skip the fast food and have a good, healthy lunch. If I can save some time, I can kick back a bit and regain my perspective on the “to do” list.

So here’s my proposal for a single New Year’s resolution this year: make “time is health” my favorite proverb, and forget all about how time used to be money.

-Nancy