When life gets super hectic and beyond controlling stress levels… I crave sewing time. Do you ever feel the same way? Like if you could just lock yourself away for a little bit and hyper-focus on something else you could clear your head?
To make room for all of the extra tasks at work and the appointments on your calendar, it is easy to start cutting back on the time you carve out for yourself.
You might reschedule that lunch date you had with a friend, stay up late to work on that project for work…. or put that quilt you were really excited to start sewing on the back burner for “someday“. *womp womp womp*
Even with all that is going on and your full calendar… you should never apologize for taking a sewing day and here is why.
I’m a huge believer of self-care and do what you gotta do to take care of you so you can take care of everything else.
I’ve written a few posts on the matter if you care to enlighten yourself a little more…
- HOW TO MAKE MORE TIME FOR SEWING AND QUILTING
- YOU CAN’T POUR FROM AN EMPTY CUP… AND OTHER THINGS I SHOULD LISTEN TO
- AN ANSWER TO QUILTING WOES! AKA A RESCUE FOR THE BUSY GIRL!
- HOW DO YOU COPE WITH COMPLETE CHAOS?
- WHAT TO DO WHEN LIFE WON’T LET YOU QUILT!
What you do to take care of you is not a priority that should make anyone feel ashamed or apologetic. (To clarify, it is not an excuse to neglect the needs of others either... keep reading to know when to draw the line.)
The 4 Reasons why you should never apologize for taking a sewing day
1. To Avoid Burnout
Sometimes we need to take action to care for ourselves to avoid burnout. You are aware of your personal limits and you certainly know when you have reached (or gone past) those limits!
Take steps to keep yourself from reaching the end of your rope during an especially busy or stressful season!
Doing what you can to be healthy, make good choices, and generally, being responsible for our own wellbeing is not selfish. It is necessary.
For me, somedays, that looks like me sitting on the couch with a book in my hand and my back to an enormous load of laundry waiting in the corner for me. Don’t ever let it smell your fear…
Other days, it has been a hectic week and I just want to get lost for a few hours sewing!
2. The Ability To Make Progress Towards Something Within Your Control
Maybe its a huge project at work that isn’t progressing like it should… or it is an out of control potty training toddler that has you wanting to pull your hair out?
The fact is there are times when no matter what you think or do, you are not the one in control. For OCD people like me… it’s utterly exhausting.
Taking 15 minutes to sit down and stitch a perfect quarter inch seam, over and over again to make progress towards a bigger sewing project is enough to bring a little order back into the world.
Read more tips on how you can get better piecing.
3. Two Words: Brain Rest
Ok, so sewing isn’t exactly a nap for your brain…
BUT it does require enough concentration that you can’t be focusing on planning out that crazy big church fundraiser AND following a sewing pattern at the same time!
Unless you are a superior human species, you simply won’t get anywhere with either project with only half of your attention span.
You gotta have your whole brain on that sewing pattern or you’ll be spending time with your seam ripper!
FYI: This one is my favorite seam ripper.
Taking focused time to sew can allow your brain to block out other stresses that might be weighing heavy on your shoulders.
4. A Focused Sewing Day Benefits YOU in SO MANY WAYS!
You are simply less able to handle the stresses that come our way when you’re already depleted by physical and emotional exhaustion.
You are more resilient and more able to handle life’s stress when you are both physically and emotionally at your best.
When someone tries to give you grief for spending time with your favorite sewing machine instead of _(fill in the blank)_ you can give them this list!
A Sewing Day Is Beneficial For Your Physical Health.
It isn’t a jaunty jog around the block or the same as eating a whole bushel of kale, no… but the relaxation you get from taking a happy sewing day (or even a few minutes!) can trigger a relaxation response in your body. It can calm your stress hormones which can help prevent damage to your health… so in a sense, sewing is really good for your health, both inside and out!
Your Needs Are Just As Important As Others Needs.
I can’t say this enough. Your needs are just as important as others.
Taking time out to care for yourself can remind you and others that you and your needs are important, too!
Sewing Time Gives You Alone Time
Whether you are an introvert or an extrovert, there is something special and comforting about a little alone time when you need it.
When you’re relaxing by yourself, it’s much easier to slip into a state of quiet meditation, enjoy some self-reflection, or let your problems work themselves out in the back of your mind, without taking all of your focused concentration.
It Makes You a Better Caregiver
As mommas, this is easy to overlook because our joy is supposed to be to take care of our families.
However, people who do not take care of their own needs (including inner happiness) and forget to nurture themselves are at danger of deeper levels of unhappiness, low self-esteem, and feelings of resentment.
If you’re broken, you are or no help to anyone. Don’t let it get that far.
Taking time to care for yourself regularly can make you a better caretaker for others.
Is there a thing as too much self-care time?
Taking a sewing day is necessary and fundamental, especially in a world where just existing is hard enough.
My “sewing days” can be anywhere from an uninterrupted 30 minutes at my sewing machine while dinner is in the oven to a long Saturday morning where I don’t even look at the clock until lunchtime.
It doesn’t mean that I’ve crossed everything off of my to-do list. It doesn’t mean that I’ve scrubbed the house clean or vacuumed all the floors.
I don’t know about your life, personally… but in my house, there is ALWAYS something to do, something the mend, something to be cooked…
It just NEVER ends…
There is a small trap with self-care/sewing days that I feel obligated to point out!
Sewing days as a form of self-care should not be used as an excuse to run away from everything that is required of you.
Just because you might forget about the rest of the world for a little bit doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist.
Sewing days are not the adult version of pulling the covers up over your head so the daylight can’t find you and drag you out of bed!
Also, taking care of yourself is important, but not so important that you neglect the care and well-being of others.
Before you abandon everything and lock yourself in your room for hours, do a quick check to make sure that you have your top priority list items in check:
- Take care of your family’s needs (even if its a cereal for dinner kind of night!).
- Make sure you keep up with work tasks that have a specific deadline and don’t let them pass you by.
- Be kind to yourself and others. Do not let anyone who is important to you feel like they are any less important.
You don’t need to apologize for taking a sewing day, ever.
Self-care and sewing days should be high up on your priority lists.
Take care of yourself and remember all the benefits of taking a little sewing time can have on your wellbeing and your days if you just carve out a little time.
Sewing Time = Happy Time 🙂