In this edition of The FOX Five, FOX Rehabilitation occupational therapist Katie Cooper, MS, OTR/L, creates a list intended for clinicians who may be on the edge of burnout or just having trouble striking the right balance between home life and work life. Katie, who also oversees FOX’s Live Well program, discusses the importance of setting boundaries and realizing that being glued to your work computer 24/7 does not give you adequate time to decompress and recharge your mental battery. Simple breathing techniques can help you throughout the workday as can getting into a good habit of exercising regularly and practicing good nutrition. Little things like taking a walk, doing things you enjoy, and never forgetting the power of laughter also go a long way to improve your work and life balance.

Jim: Hello everybody, welcome to The FOX Five, the show that explores the world of FOX Rehabilitation through an original list created by a FOX clinician. Today I am joined by FOX Rehabilitation occupational therapist Katie Cooper. How are you doing Katie?

Katie: I'm good, how are you?

Jim: I am great. So, Katie—big question—the question of the day is—what is your FOX Five?

Katie: My FOX Five is: Five ways to improve work and life balance.

Jim: Yes Katie, I am all ears for this. Let us begin with number one.

Katie: Alright, so this is specific to our FOX clinicians out in the field. Make sure you are doing point-of-service documentation so that you are not taking your work home with you. So, whatever you can do to make your documentation efficient, do it so you're not doing it at night.

Jim: Because you don't want that to pile up at the end of the day.

Katie: Or at the end of the week.

Jim: Or at the end of the week. Yes, get it out of the way. I like that, alright, what is number two on your FOX Five?

Katie: Make time for things you enjoy.

Jim: During the workday?

Katie: Outside of work.

Jim: Outside of the workday, okay.

Katie: I mean, sure, you can make time for it during your workday if you want to, but I'm thinking more when you are out—when you're done with work. What are you doing that you enjoy that brings you happiness, that's fun? Make time for that, so like carve out specific time.

Jim: A lot of people don't do that.

Katie: Yeah, and I would say make it non-negotiable. So, if you love going to spin class every Thursday at 5pm, make that happen. Don't let anything else get in the way, or if you want to go out to dinner with friends just put it on your planner.

Jim: Put it on your calendar!

Katie: Yes.

Jim: Aright, I like that one, too. Katie what is number three on your FOX Five?

Katie: Set boundaries.

Jim: Explain.

Katie: We have our computer with us all the time, right? We can work whenever we want. Our patients have our cell phone numbers and they can call us whenever they want, and we are caring individuals, right? We all want to help, and give, and do as much as possible to help our patients—which is great—but we also have to take care of ourselves, and we have other obligations. Set boundaries.

Jim: Yes.

Katie: So maybe there's a time limit when you answer the phone for work calls, or when you're checking your email, or you know—hours of the day that you set aside for other things. Do not negotiate other things, or maybe you tell your patient you can call me between these hours, but after that, I'll call you back the next day. So setting those expectations.

Jim: As you said, “setting boundaries.”

Katie: Yep.

Jim: What is number four on your FOX Five?

Katie: Alright, number four is: end the stress cycle. When you know you're having a stressful day or something happens that increases your stress, you need to end that stress cycle and let your body know that you are safe and that you can rest. Things that you can do are breathing, taking a walk—you know—spending time with someone you love, laughter.

Jim: Taking time to do those things so that the stress doesn't just build up, because you you can feel that inside when you get stressed out.

Katie: Oh yeah, definitely. So maybe even before you feel that, that's when you need to call a time out.

Jim: Absolutely.

Katie: That can be as easy as taking one minute to do some deep breathing. It doesn't have to take a lot of time. Take a few deep breaths.

Jim: That brings us to number five on your FOX Five.

Katie: Take care of your mind and body with exercise and nutrition.

Jim: I mean, that's what what we tell our patients to do, right?

Katie: Yeah.

Jim: We would all be hypocrites if we didn't do the same.

Katie: Exactly, exactly, so you got to take care of yourself. You got to make time for it, otherwise you're not going to be helpful to anybody else.

Jim: How much exercise should you do within a given week? Take into consideration a clinician who treats Monday through Friday.

Katie: Right.

Jim: What's a what's a healthy amount of exercise?

Katie: I would say at least 30 minutes a day of something that's not work-related. We could work pretty hard at our job, but that's not really exercise that is intentional or is helping our mind and our body, so we need to do something outside of work, and it doesn't have to be an intense workout. It could be taking a nice power walk or doing a yoga class, something that is giving your body that exercise, but also relaxing your mind and letting you focus on something outside of work.

Jim: Katie, that was an excellent FOX Five. Thank you! I feel more peaceful already.

Katie: Thank you, I'm glad it helped.