Self-Care A-Z: Working From Home (WFH) During COVID-19 and Beyond

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Work From Home During Pandemic

by Erlene Grise-Owens, EdD, LCSW, MSW, MRE, lead co-editor of The A-to-Z Self-Care Handbook for Social Workers and Other Helping Professionals 

     During the COVID-19 crisis, many social workers continue going to worksites. Please, prioritize safety, access resources, and advocate for your well-being.

     Others are working from home (WFH) for the first time or at expanded levels. I moved to WFH three years ago and struggled to adjust. Now, colleagues are experiencing similar adjustments. The following self-care strategies apply for this crisis and beyond. 

Establish Structure and Balance

    Work-life balance is an unhelpful construct; instead, we need life balance. WFH makes this reframe even more relevant. Defining healthy balance between professional and personal aspects may vary. But balance must be vigilantly pursued when working from home.  People are putting in even more work hours working from home during this crisis. This phenomenon is especially troubling since research shows that employees working from home are particularly prone to burnout; boundaries and focus are important preventatives.  

     The step that helped me most in finding balance, setting boundaries, and maintaining focus was setting up a home office.  I turned a guest room into an office that I love! Designating a sequestered workspace, even if a table or closet, helps enormously. If you don’t have a door, use some kind of barrier to mark the area.

     Similarly, set boundaries! As much as possible, design a schedule that works for you and your family. Set access boundaries, such as responding to calls/emails during designated hours. Use rituals and routines to demarcate work time. For instance, take 15 minutes to clear your workspace, make a to-do list for the next day, and power down electronics.  A colleague begins and ends work time with a chime and deep breaths. Crossland shares tips for parents/caregivers dealing with “distraction” challenges.

     Consider what you miss about work, prior to WFH, and adapt those aspects. For instance, a colleague missed her commute as time to enter the day and decompress on the way home. She incorporated 20-minute walks in the mornings and evenings to demarcate her work day. 

     Often, home is a retreat from workplace culture; bringing the workplace into home can feel invasive.  Consider how to make the best of WFH, while maintaining a home-sanctuary. 

Redefine Success/Productivity

    Self-care is a lifestyle - not just something to do after work to recover. Self-care isn’t an escape from responsibilities; it helps with meeting responsibilities. These conceptualizations of self-care become even more crucial in the context of WFH. 

     Working in an office building, productivity is often gauged by “time at the office.”  WFH can be disorienting and can make it harder to define success. Clarifying roles and definitions of “productivity” and “success” are especially crucial. Focus on priorities of your job role. Establish SMART goals to ensure realistic accomplishments and set healthy parameters. 

     Include these elements for “success” - taking breaks, including meals; having “down time,” including movement and rest; enjoying social exchanges. Also, integrate time for professional development and professional support into your work hours. Scientifically, we’re more productive and healthier when we include these aspects in life balance. Success!

Re-Envision Connection

    Reduced social connection in WFH is a significant challenge and requires intentional attention. Establish how to stay connected with your team, use supervision, and access consultation. And everything doesn’t have to be ZOOM-time. Before COVID’s stay-home requirement, I routinely scheduled walk-talk meetings in local parks. During COVID, I’m scheduling even more walk-talks - just by phone.   

     Also, WFH magnifies the need to stay connected with broader professional networks, such as professional organizations. Access or initiate online connections/supports, such as Facebook professional support groups. Especially in WFH, social media expand professional connections. 

     WFH also offers the opportunity to (re)connect with self, nature, home, neighborhood, and loved ones. WFH can include more self-reflection as part of life balance. Contrasted with being mostly at the workplace, WFH allows for more connection with home-making, natural environments, and those in our immediate environs. On daily walks around the neighborhood, enjoying spring beauty, I interact (distantly!) even more with immediate neighbors. Although I'm not minimizing myriad stressors of the crisis requiring families to be “all things” - school, entertainment, and so forth - WFH is an opportunity to increase family time. 

     Reconsidering work expectations can be a positive outcome from this terrible crisis. WFH will likely become more common. During this crisis and long term, let’s learn from each other. What are your self-care struggles, successes, and strategies in WFH?

Peace, Love, & Self-Care,

Erlene

Dr. Erlene Grise-Owens, EdD, LCSW, MSW, MRE, is a Partner in The Wellness Group, ETC.  This LLC provides evaluation, training, and consultation for organizational wellness and practitioner well-being. Dr. Grise-Owens is lead editor of The A-to-Z Self-Care Handbook for Social Workers and Other Helping Professionals.  As a former faculty member and graduate program director, she and a small (but mighty!) group of colleagues implemented an initiative to promote self-care as part of the social work education curriculum. Previously, she served in clinical and administrative roles. She has experience with navigating toxicity and dysfunction, up-close and personal! Likewise, as an educator, she saw students enter the field and quickly burn out. As a dedicated social worker, she believes the well-being of practitioners is a matter of social justice and human rights. Thus, she is on a mission to promote self-care and wellness!