Living a balanced life – is it a myth?

We often hear and read about how important it is to have a healthy balance in our lives: a good work-life balance, balanced nutrition and to feel emotionally balanced. Do you ever feel like you’re striving for this wonderful place called ‘balance’ and yet you never quite reach it? Perhaps you see social media posts from people exalting about the perfect balance they are achieving in their lives?

Is it possible to find, and maintain, a healthy life balance? Or is it a myth?

I believe it is possible to create balance, however it may not look like you think it should.

I’m sure you’ve tried to balance on one leg before, or perhaps you’ve tried more advanced balancing poses in a yoga class. When you balance using your body, what do you find? Most of us experience some wobbling to start with, when we are holding the balance our muscles are constantly working to adjust and readjust our position, some days it’s easy to balance and others it feels almost impossible!

This is a very good depiction of what balance looks like in our lives, there is actually very little complete stillness in balance. It is constantly moving, adjusting and changing. And sometimes it feels like there is no balance at all.

Balance in our lives is not something we create and keep exactly the same for weeks or months, it changes all the time. Being flexible and open to the flow of life is the key. Depending on what our priorities are on any given day, week or month, will inform the balance that is right for us. For example if you are building up to a big event at work, your balance might look like more hours in the office than usual. However once the event is over, taking some time off to rest, relax and reset will serve to re-balance your body and mind.

Taking the pressure off ourselves to constantly be living in the ‘perfect balance’ does wonders to our self esteem and feelings of positivity. Knowing that one day balance might be taking a nap and have a bowl of soup before an early night, and the next it might be putting your dancing shoes on and having a night on the town.

Photo Credit: Pinterest

Listen to your body, be willing to keep adjusting to what feels right, and if our lives demand us to feel ‘out of balance’ for a short period time, that’s ok.

Feeling a sense of balance in your life, is just that, it’s YOURS. It may look different to others, and will be constantly shifting. Meditating for hours and doing yoga as the sun rises may be a beautiful balance for some, for you it may be having a quiet cup of tea before the kids get up or watching your favourite Netflix show on a chilled evening.

Written by Gemma Ford