Change Your Pace and Improve Your Outlook

Summertime is a change of pace for many segments of our society. Children and adolescents are often on vacation for several weeks during the summer months providing a departure from their normal academic routines. This diversion from the hectic pace of the school year gives youth more time for the pursuit of leisure activities, fewer deadlines, more opportunity for physical activity and freedom from potentially stressful schedules.

Many educators are also able to depart from their normal school year teaching routines and be away from career related activities for several weeks at a time. These dedicated individuals certainly deserve a respite from the overworked and underpaid lifestyles of teachers.

Some businesses and organizations move to a different schedule during the summer working longer hours for several days during the week and having time off for extended weekend activities.

The longer daylight hours of the summer months provide a greater opportunity for leisure time. Softball games, boating, twilight golf and family outings to the park for picnics are examples of activities taking place during the summer months. These provide a change of routine from the normal schedule of September through May.

These variations from the usual and customary agendas often improve mental health in several ways:

• The opportunity to spend more time together as a family can give rise to improved relationships and communication patterns within the family. The summertime, which often includes vacations, gives parents and children more time to strengthen the bonds between them and make adjustments to help reduce stress during the coming school year.

• Children are often able to spend more time with their grandparents during the summer months providing the opportunity for time away from parents in a different setting.

Grandparents who are retired are often able to keep their grandchildren for several days or weeks at a time producing happy lifetime memories for the children and their grandparents.

• A different scheduled pace affords the opportunity for reflection, introspection and insightful thinking about life’s challenges. “Getting out of the forest so you can see the trees” often occurs during a more leisurely, relaxed pace during the summer months.

Enjoy the “good old summertime” and take a leisurely journey into better mental health.

Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D. Copyright 2003