Context Switching and Tension Headaches

The last couple of weeks have been jam-packed for me. I had several back to back meetings throughout the week and didn’t have a full day with less than three meetings. Having no breaks throughout the day makes it impossible for me to do any work outside those meetings, and it makes it impossible to do any focused work. As an introvert, this kind of work burns me out fast, and the only way to recover is to have time burning off stress running or alone deep in a book or drawing.

These weeks I’ve come home with a tension headache. At least that’s how I’ve prescribed it. They feel like someone is pushing in on my temples and creates pain across my forehead. They last throughout the evening only to be tempered down by a long run or a tough workout.

Starting next week, I’m trying something new; I’m blocking off Tuesdays and Thursdays to get in some focused work. I’ll force the time to have some time by myself to work on design work, leadership work, or marketing work. I’m hoping that balancing out my week will leave me a little less exhausted at the end of the week and not use the weekend as a recovery from the week.