There have been so many times that we have allowed our body to be swept away with daily life. But, how often do we learn and establish ways to improve it?

Quick exercise: 

Right now, stop typing. Just read and answer these questions: 1) How does your body feel right now? 2) Has anything on your body been especially achy this week? 3) Has any environment been especially draining? 3) How did these moments impact you? Take your time to answer these questions. 

Now, did you spend your time answering the questions? Did you even do the exercise? Later, I am going to give more exercises that bring your body back to center, but I am going to explain why it is important to do so now. 

First, our bodies are the most important vessel on this planet. It is our mode to perform the most basic task that we are asked to do from day one of conception: live. However, we may find ourselves existing in a realm more driven by tasks than enjoyment. It’s time to change this way of thinking because the body is delicate emotionally and physically. This is something to start admitting. I think that it has become a trend to talk about how “hard-working,” “tenacious,” “determined” one is. When it comes to working, that is mostly perpetuated by capitalist societies to motivate you to work harder. That might have sounded a little “eat the rich” but it’s true! Ed Slavishak explains in his article Made by Work that this trend was done on purpose to convince workers to work harder/better.  This goes back to 1910 when “companies inform[ed] employees that the “best safety device known” was a careful and conscientious worker.” Mind you, these companies that they are talking about, worked specifically with heavy machinery. These jobs would be utterly banned and unacceptable now due to the high rates of injuries they caused. But, don’t we still hear talk like this today? 

In reality, there are many different forms of labor, but we are going to quickly examine two: emotional and physical. Physical labor, as mentioned above, can be seen in the “contentious relationship between individuals’ health and the environments in which they work, the materials with which they work, and the motions that they must perform on the job” (Slavishak, 2010.) I am not only talking about construction jobs that specifically use their bodies to build, but desk jobs and retail jobs, maybe even jobs that require you to walk/stand for long hours. You must admit typing for hours on end is not natural. Our bodies are not meant to be pushed to the limit to perform daily. Is there anything you do for long periods of time? I can name three right now: typing, with my glasses on, staring at a screen. My fingers are starting to hurt a little and honestly, I only got my glasses because of the screen. See my point?

  Moving on, emotional Labor, as defined by Hochschild, the person who invented the term, says it is labor “for which you’re paid, which centrally involves trying to feel the right feeling for the job.” Emotions might be especially vital for call centers, sales positions, babysitting/daycares. You are paid daily to ignore your true feelings and perform for the sake of others. This might sound like human nature to some (please consider therapy), but daily monotonous avoidance can have detrimental effects. If you think you might experience emotional labor let me ask you this: Do you ever find yourself walking out of work and sighing while you drop the smile you held for hours? Yea, emotional labor. 

So, if I do anything in this article, I want to provide assistance in coping or overcoming these forms of labor. So, below are a list of techniques one can use whenever they please!

3 techniques for physical labor experiencers:

1. This first one is less of a technique and more like a task. However, I have come to love it if I sit for a long period of time: take a walk!
2. If you can’t flat out quit, which is impossible for 99.9% of America, keep your body flexible! I suggest stretching daily. I bought a foam roller and I use it every other day. This non-techy device kind of hurts at first, but by collapsing your body against it and rolling back and forth, you bring air into your muscles. This alleviates a lot of stress caused by being stationary for long periods of time. 
3. This last one I call “turning the body off.” No, it is not sleeping. It is recentering yourself from the body you have been ignoring. 
   1. Step 1: Get into an area where you can be alone unbothered or unbothered and find a seat!
   2. Step 2: Take a deep breath. 5 seconds in, 5 seconds out.
   3. Step 3: Working bottom to top, feel each part of your body as your thinking migrates to the top of your head. 
   4. Step 4: When it’s reached the top of your head, repeat vice versa and each time you do it, go slower. Do this 5 times.
   5. Step 5. At the fifth time, stop. Take a deep breath. 5 seconds in, 5 seconds out.
   6. Step 6: When you finish sitting, come back to reality and look around. Examine where you are. Take another deep breath and go!

2 exercises for emotional labor experiencers:

1. ICE! Yes. ICE. Get an Ice Cube and place it under your eyes and on your T-Zone. While you hold your breath, your brain is shocked. This sends a message throughout your whole body to breath and you automatically become grounded.  Do this whenever you feel like you might be losing yourself to daily routine or high stress.
2.  Do something different when you leave the job. Yes, I know this is kind of strange, but when you leave work, do not go straight home. Go to a bar or the park. 

I hope any of this could provide some clarity! Use the techniques as you go through your day and take it easy on your body.