From work to treatment, when we are facing a full day of scheduling and tasks, we experience an afternoon slump. Everyone approaches time and productivity differently. Some people are most productive in the afternoon while other people are more productive first thing in the morning. Typically, for many people, the hours between 2:00-4:00PM are the most difficult times of day to get anything done. Building healthy habits for getting over the afternoon slump in treatment will translate to your professional life outside of treatment and help you be a more independent, productive, and efficient contributor in your life and your work.
Why The Afternoon Slump Happens
Two biological factors contribute to the afternoon slump. First, is food. Most people eat breakfast in the beginning of their day and need to break for lunch in the early afternoon after exhausting their energy resources. For this reason, it is often suggested by nutritionists and dieticians to have a snack somewhere between breakfast and lunch so as not to have that crash in energy, followed by a tremendous spike. When we get too hungry by lunchtime, we tend to overeat. Exhausted and hungry from our morning work, we eat too much too hurriedly on our lunch time breaks. Though we experience a spike in energy immediately thereafter, by the later afternoon hours we are crashing once again. The second biological factor contributing to the afternoon slump is our natural circadian rhythm. Our circadian rhythm is what teachers our body to recognize the time to be awake and the time to go to sleep. When the sun starts to set and nighttime is falling, for example, we have an internal energetic drive to start relaxing and prepare for sleep. Part of the afternoon slump is a shift and adjustment in the circadian rhythm. Afternoon is the beginning of the relaxation cycle. The body and the brain know the end of the work day is coming and prepares ahead of time to start relaxing and ease into the post-work life. Feeling warmer, colder, sleepier, less productive, and lacking in energy is normal.
Combatting the Afternoon Slump
When you change your story, you can change your day and your life. Becoming aware of why the afternoon slump happens and how the afternoon slump manifests in your personal life you can start to notice the signs and pay attention to what your body needs. It is likely that you need to get up, walk around, have a snack, go outside, and change your environment. You can practice desk chair yoga, or do some right in your office. Moving your body gets your blood flowing and changes the focus of your brain. A 2-10 minute mindful meditation can restore your energy and create more calm in your brain when you are experiencing the stress and frustration of the afternoon slump. Eat a energy boosting snack that doesn’t include caffeine and sugar.
Oceanfront Recovery offers professional men the opportunity to engage in comprehensive and life changing treatment while maintaining responsibility for their jobs. Our residential treatment programs for mens’ addiction and dual diagnosis focuses on a core philosophy of changing the story of addiction into one of recovery. When men can change their story, they can change their lives. For information on our programs, call us today: 877.279.1777
