With so many of us working remotely these days, it’s more important than ever to maintain our wellbeing. Isolation, longer-than-average work hours, and a blending of our work/life roles can throw our mental and physical wellbeing off-balance. It can be difficult to juggle work and home life when they’re both happening in the same space. Now that we can’t get away from it, it’s imperative to prioritize our wellness.

Working from home does have a lot of benefits—increased flexibility, the absence of annoying commutes, the constant kitchen availability (good and bad!) and top of the list, the wardrobe (sweatpants!)—the downside is that many people are finding their workday never really ends the way it did when they worked outside their homes. Step back and take a look at your current life situation. Are you working from home or are you living where you work?

Like me, you may start out with the best intentions on Monday, determined to make time for yoga, a facial, and maybe a social event with a friend that week, but next thing you know, it’s Friday afternoon, you’re exhausted, and all you want to do is unplug, lay on the couch, drink some wine, and binge Netflix. And that’s not a bad thing to do. That’s self-care too. But if that’s the only self-care you’re doing per week, it’s not enough!

To combat some of the pitfalls of the remote work life and keep your mental and physical wellbeing in check during these difficult days, here are five things you can do to keep YOU a priority:

1. If you’re able to, consider leaving the house a couple of times a week and working from a collaborative co-working space like the one offered at The WeBreathe Wellness Center. There’s nothing like a change of scenery to improve your concentration, and getting out of the house forces you to shower and get dressed in actual clothes. Sometimes you need that nudge when you’re working from home.
2. Use a planner to schedule weekly rituals to help you maintain your self-care and stick to them. Maybe it’s yoga on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, virtually or in studio. The important thing it to make sure you do it because you’re important!
3. Use the same planner to schedule other self-care practices you want to incorporate or get back into, such as meditation, painting, massage, etc.
4. Try adding one social event to your planner per week or every two weeks at the very least. Working from home can be isolating so getting out and around other humans regularly really helps. Whether you attend a monthly drum circle, a writing workshop, a healthy eating workshop, or a healing SPA Service, add it to your planner and stick to it!
5. It’s always good to have a weekly YOU night. On this night, do whatever you feel like doing. Maybe it’s getting takeout and watching a movie. Maybe it’s curling up in your favorite spot and reading that book you’ve been meaning to get to. Maybe it’s a spa night—a bubble bath, face mask, a couple candles and a glass of wine. The point is, it’s your night, so you do you! And don’t stress if you can’t do it on the same night each week. Just make a point to do it once a week.

The pressures of this blended work/home life can be overwhelming, and it can feel impossible to make time for you. But there are seven days in every week. Fit YOU in there!

Sue Franco is a freelance writer and editor specializing in website content, blogs, marketing materials, and other informational content.