By Lori Bessler
As lawyers, we sometimes find ourselves inundated with work, deadlines, demanding clients, and difficult opposing counsel. Have you ever started working in the morning only to realize you skipped lunch, and haven’t looked up from the computer screen?
When we get stressed or neglect our wellbeing, our bodies can be overcome with cortisol decreasing our normally high functioning brains. Chronic stress affects our ability to think strategically and ignites the sympathetic nervous system perpetuating a never-ending feeling of fight or flight. So what can we do as lawyers to eliminate (or at least mitigate) the stress and pressures inherent in our careers? The answer is simple. Take a moment to Pause and see what you Affect.
Pausing for a moment on a regular basis, starting once hourly, to breathe or stretch provides a vital reset during the workday. It also calms the nervous system, sparking the rest and digest function of the parasympathetic nervous system. This simple pause can affect your mood, productivity and overall health.
On days when you are feeling especially stressed out, pause to close your eyes and observe your breath. Without changing anything, just notice the different qualities of your breath, its speed and depth, where you feel any blocks or places of tension in your body as you inhale and exhale. Then slowly begin to elongate your exhale, as the exhale gradually becomes a few beats longer than the inhale. When we elongate the exhalation we begin to tone the nervous system moving us into that state of restoration and relaxation.
Take a moment to Pause today, and experience the positive Affect it has on your wellbeing and work.
Lori Bessler is an experienced litigator who found her balance through gentle and restorative yoga. Now with her own private practice, the Law Office of Lori Bessler, Lori infuses her passion for the law with wellness as a lawyer, yoga teacher and writer.