Section 2: Time Blocks

In this section, join me as I explore the concept of time blocks and how they will help you decrease that feeling of being overwhelmed while creating a sense of ease and balance.

In Section 1, you learned how poverty mind can change how you see and value time. You took time to explore how diet culture can amplify poverty mind thoughts in ways that devalue self-care. You also learned that letting go of poverty mind is a necessary step to self-care. 

Section 2 will help you shift your thinking by looking at time, specifically when you can do things. Time isn't infinite. We all are limited by the same 24 hours in the day. Accepting this truth will help you create a clearer sense of when self-care can happen. What makes time blocks work? The key is they utilize the natural transitions that are part of your day. While there can be any number of time blocks, you will map out the five most common blocks from morning to night.

A Bit About Time Blocks

First, it is essential to realize that all time blocks have a beginning and ending transition period. I call this transition time, and we will discuss it in depth in section 3.

What is the benefit of having transitions at the beginning and end of each time block? Transition time helps physically, mentally, and emotionally reset your nervous system. This reset allows you to balance the many alligators you juggle as you manage or prevent a chronic condition like diabetes. Other benefits of having transition time include seeing it as a needed pause, a deep breath, or a chance to simply be.

Transitions are mentally and emotionally taxing. They are when distraction, overwhelm, and frustration are most likely to occur. It is why rituals, routines, and reviews are often part of transitions. They support and help you stay focused, calm, and happy when transitioning. They allow you to manage your energy and create sustainable self-care.

Transitions

To start understanding time blocks, you first have to understand transitions. Visualize transitions as moving from one activity to another. We want to notice transitioning because transitions are challenging and here is why. 

It is easy to get distracted, overwhelmed or interrupted when transitioning from one activity to another. It requires you to shift from one project, responsibility, place, event, or task to another. Transitions require a lot of executive functioning and can be fatiguing for many people, including those with chronic illnesses like Diabetes, Long Covid, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and Depression, or are neurodiverse and have ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorder. It is because transition represents a time of uncertainty, a sense of the unknown, and a leap into the future. To transition comfortably, you want to ensure everything is done before you leave and start a new project or task. Transitions can feel like you are straddling between the past and the future. You are in a no-man land, a bardo, or the space between the past and future worlds.