March 2025 Employee Wellness Newsletter

Seasons and circles of adaption thrive in 2025 with rest and renewal, two new APS programs, how to be the change you want to see at work and more wellness trends!

Wellness Wire - Seasons & Circles of Adaption

The bathroom floor felt cool, and it was, thankfully, a little quiet. I had a toddler-sized pillow with a soft flannel animal print for my aching head, and then a sweet voice chirped, “Momma, are you okay?”  No…I thought to myself but replied to my anxious toddler, “Yes, love bug, mommy will be fine; I’m just a little sick—but everything is fine.”  

My husband was out of town, and I was sick with a 3+-year-old and a six-month-old baby in a newly built but not yet finished house. I hauled myself and both girls into the bathroom, secured the area like a fort with pillows, blankets, toys, stuffed animals, a bottle, and a sippy cup, and (literally) gutted it out …I had the stomach flu and could barely peel myself off the floor, but what else could I do? Since the authorities frown upon leaving babies alone, and we have no family in NM, I felt like this was my only option. There may have been some crawling involved on my part.  

It’s just one memory I have from the “season of exhaustion.” I think it lasted about seven years, but the time boundary is a little fuzzy since memory is one thing that goes when we’re tired!

Seasonal transitions have come up a lot lately in conversations about our energy, fatigue, and personal time for well-being. 

We expect the annual shifts in nature, but we rarely look at our lives in the same way—as seasons. We’re wrapping up March’s physical energy wellspring with rest and renewal, and I want to be honest with you—there are some seasons that are hard and draining. There’s too much on our plates, and we’re emotionally and spiritually tapped out. But that doesn’t mean our health has to be the sacrificial lamb on the altar of ‘everything else.’ 

It’s inevitable in this complex, messy life that we have hard spells that feel like 13 months of winter with March winds and no end in sight. Since there’s no way around them, we just have to move through the best we can with our well-being intact. That’s the caveat—how we cope makes all the difference for our short and long-term health and well-being. 

In the context of work, we have early-, mid-, and late-career stages. We also have family seasons. The challenge is that our needs and responsibilities in one area can easily conflict and collide when they overlap. 

If you’re early to mid-career and have young children, it’s busy - hugely rewarding, yes - but taxing. If you’re in a later career stage with older children, perhaps grandchildren, and/or a caregiver, you’re busy too!  This is referred to as the 'sandwich generation.’ Many in our midst are working, caring for children, and aging parents.  I've been there.

Depending on your career and goals, you might be in a phase with no family and just a lot of work. I’ve been there, too. Sometimes, to get to where we want to go or to accomplish growth goals, we have to make some trade-offs. So, I realize there is a balancing act, and in some eras, we'll have inherent fatigue for the sacrifice of upward movement personally and professionally. I wrote about this two years ago in The Truth About Motivation.

Seasons are really about adapting. In this sphere of influence graphic, the author adds a circle of adaption. Over the past few years, I've been writing about the topic of adapting with mindset shifts for sustainability - to meet our physical, emotional, and mental health needs, to stay inspired,  and ultimately to thrive to reclaim health and harmony.  Our ability to adapt to fluctuating circumstances, changing tides, and seasons is called resilience.  We’re not born with it; we cultivate and build it just like anything else.

Generally speaking, it’s moving through seasonal highs and lows by learning from our mistakes, holding firm boundaries, and continually realigning expectations while applying heaping doses of grace and forgiveness that build our resilience reservoir.  

Some circumstances are out of our control, but we can adapt through daily wellness practices to mitigate emotional and physical storm damage. 

Recognize and embrace the fact that seasons change. 

We see this as we get older and have hindsight as a guide. But taking the long view when we’re in the midst of a tough season isn’t that easy.

If we can manage to care for our well-being during and despite hard times, we will experience a much brighter future. 

In the spirit of March and seasonal shifts, here is a list of life seasons you may be in or will experience and simple shifts to help you move through them as best you can. 

As a side note, I pray and meditate as my anchor wellness activity every season. It bookends my days. I know that not everyone in this group practices the same beliefs, so try meditation as a daily practice. Mindfulness meditation is an incredibly powerful way to relieve stress and enhance well-being, and APS Employee Wellness offers it for FREE.  

• Season of Exhaustion/Fatigue - shift to honoring types of rest, nutrition, movement, and establishing boundaries
• Season of Sadness/Grief - shift to prayer/meditation, connection with community, hobbies, activities that renew and spark joy
• Season of Growth - shift to gratitude, awareness, humility, empathy, encouragement, and presentness
• Season of Uncertainty - shift to prayer/meditation, letting go, embracing the moment and circle of control
• Season of Stress - shift to prayer/meditation, movement, honoring rest, boundaries, nutrition, and circle of control
• Season of Conflict - shift to prayer/meditation, forgiveness, grace, humility, seeking to understand
• Season of Peace, Love, and Joy - practice daily gratitude, sharing, empathy, encouragement, and connection
• Season of Caregiving - shift to honoring types of rest, meditation/gratitude, presentness, nutrition, and movement
• Season of Retirement - shift to community, connection, gratitude, engagement

As you probably noticed, so many of these are interchangeable because our well-being is integrated, and really, the same small wellness shifts have an impact across multiple spectrums.

My hope for you is that you’ll be able to see the opportunity some seasons bring so that you can enjoy more fruitful periods. We don’t tend to appreciate the good without having experienced the bad.  I know that when we are faced with loss, grief, sadness, and illness, seeing ‘opportunity’ in that is hard, if not impossible.  So don’t think of it that way. Think of it as getting through with straightforward, daily wellness activities so that when happier, calmer seas prevail - and they will - you have the energy to enjoy the season.

While we grow through grief and other dark times, try not to stay bound by them—because there are brighter days ahead.  But if we stay tethered emotionally to seasons of grief, stress, and conflict, it can create a new season - one of resentment, bitterness, and anger. 

Our season of retirement can be just that if we’ve managed to care for our wellness throughout earlier, more tumultuous, challenging seasons. Seasons of stress and uncertainty can make us stingy with patience, love, grace, or kind words, perpetuating more strife in personal and professional relationships and leading to conflict.

We don't want to leave our physical, mental, spiritual, or emotional well-being stranded on the highway of life. This is our year to Thrive in 2025 and reclaim health and harmony despite any given season!

The following builds on some of the wellness shifts mentioned above: 

• Honor the seven types of rest and put them into practice. Sleep is critical to long-term health, disease prevention, and emotional well-being. But when situational factors make sleep elusive, utilize the other types of rest to get some relief.  

• Make movement and time in nature a priority. Stretching, walking, or even meditating or praying with the sound of silence is very healing. 

• Be careful with the overuse of substances like alcohol, smoking/vaping, and food. We feed our feelings to fill gaping holes from grief, discontent, life dissatisfaction, conflict, and other emotions. Instead, try identifying where you’re using food or alcohol to self-soothe and redirect to a behavior that will enhance wellness and give you energy, motivation, and a sense of accomplishment versus creating more guilt or illness.  Admittedly, habits can be hard to break.  Excuses are even more challenging because they show an unwillingness, or unreadiness, to change. Are you wrapped in a habit or making excuses? 

• Prune back the busy. When one area of life becomes intense, prune back the busyness in other areas. Too many mental threads create weeds of stress and anxiety.  You do NOT have to be everything for everyone. You can say “no” to extra requests on your time. (I truly learned this the hard way.) 

• Remind yourself that seasons change.  When I was in my “season of fatigue,”  I knew it wouldn’t be forever, and that thought alone helped me cope and embrace the time - or lack of it. Whether it was a 2 am cuddle session with an upset child or a condensed workout, I cherished the time on both ends of the spectrum.  When we acknowledge something as a season, we recognize that it’s short-term (relatively). This allows us to move our mindset to presentness, gratitude, and appreciation. 

Think of it this way: Your weekends will not always be usurped by sports, helping aging parents, or navigating your elementary, pre-teen, and teenager’s schedules and hardships. You will not always be the family taxi driver. These are times to cherish. Set aside the work, be present, and engage with your family because they—your kids and aging parents—will move on. 

I used to say that one of the reasons I loved living in New Mexico was that we had seasons without extremes. But life has extremes; we all experience them, and none of us get through without a few scars. We can mitigate the damage and embrace the seasons with our well-being intact when we consider the circle of adaption, shifting mindsets, and cultivating wellness habits that lessen stress and connect us to the people and activities that bring us joy. 

If you're struggling, I encourage you to identify a season from the list above and ask yourself, “How can I work on adapting with more wellness?” Sometimes, we need outside resources, anchors from our faith, family, or counseling to help us. APS offers a suite of solutions for all employees. Keep scrolling below, and check the other wellness resource pages for the services you need to keep your head and heart afloat and thrive through all seasons! 

March Wellness Wire - Fatigue vs Failure

Join the March Activities to Thrive in 2025!

This is a yearlong program that offers flexibility to participate in various activity challenges, nutrition resets, education, short videos, and wellness journeys. 

• The year is structured into four quarters for the wellsprings of "energy management." 
• Activities and challenges will center around physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being. 
• Everything is hosted on the Wellness at Work well-being platform, and information is duplicated on the APS Employee Wellness event calendar. 

March Focus Activities- Rest & Renewal 

• March 3-9: Types of Rest
• March 10-16: Daily Renewal 
• March 24-30: Sleep - The secret to ultimate well-being. 

*Invites for these weekly focus activities and other challenges go out through the APS Employee Wellness group on Wellness at Work. See below.

Simple steps to participate: 

If you haven't already done so, join the Wellness at Work wellness incentive platform. 

• Join the APS Employee Wellness group. (Click "social" and browse "groups," find the APS Employee Wellness group, and join to receive invitations to nutrition reset activities, "sugar-free me" cleanse, kitchen-clean up, movement challenges, stress, and burnout-busting activities, and so much more!)
• Under "Social," click "Events Calendar." Browse and read the information daily or weekly. The information is also duplicated in the APS Employee Wellness event calendar. 
• Earn wellness incentive points for rewards and ongoing gift card prizes for participation throughout the year! (Gift card prizes are in addition to your wellness incentive point rewards.)

• Please join the "APS Employee Wellness Group" on the Wellness at Work platform to participate in challenges and be eligible for additional raffle prizes. This step ensures you receive invitations to join challenges when they arise. You can also pick and choose which challenges to participate in throughout the year. 

Be the Change You Want to See at Work

The definition of work is an activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result.  Generally, there are teams with shared goals and a paycheck that goes with that effort. Since we spend more waking hours at work than at home, I think something that's missing in the definition is the social connection, collaboration, and belonging that can enhance our workplace environment and our lives.  The J-O-B does not have to be drudgery. It doesn't have to be a lonely, disconnected, unfulfilling experience.  

Work is not a dirty word and I think we need to redefine it as a place where we foster community, growth and connection. One that lifts, enlightens, brightens, and supports all of us.  A place where we can all thrive. 

The APS Employee Well-being Ambassadors help fill the belonging gap by promoting and cultivating wellness in schools and departments. The ambassadors also serve as the 'boots on the ground,' giving creative feedback to the APS Wellness Department. So, what do you say -  Do you want to help bring some fun back to 'work', foster community and spread wellness mojo?  Click here to learn more about becoming an APS Well-being Ambassador.

You can also email Becky MacGregor, APS Employee Wellness Coordinator, at becky.macgregor@aps.edu. 

Gain Confidence in the Kitchen & Save the Smoke Alarm

So you want to save money and eat healthier, but there's just this one thing holding you back...the actual cooking part is a bit of a barrier, and perhaps the graphic above resonates just a little too much with you!  

Look, we get it. Not everyone feels confident in the kitchen. But now is your opportunity to learn. APS Employee Wellness is offering new "Confidence in the Kitchen" skills-based cooking classes! 

 There are two dates in April to choose from. Tuesday, April 8, or Thursday, April 10, 5:00-6:30 pm.

Classes are located at the Presbyterian Community Health Center, 1301 Wyoming Blvd. NE.  Click here to register. Because this is a hands-on class, the maximum number of participants is 20. We will add classes if there is high demand. Please email employee.wellness@aps.edu if you have questions. 

Oh, My Aching Head, Neck, Shoulders, Back, Wrists...! 

You get the picture. Something is just not quite right with your desk, chair, and computer setup, and it hurts! So, we have a solution with a new Ergonomics 101 program. 

This is a series of six short videos to guide you to a healthier, more productive workspace. Register here or scan the QR code in the flyer below and start receiving the information.  

 More Wellness Trends in the News

News: Exercise for Brain Health and Dementia Risk

Exercise, even at moderate levels, is linked with maintaining brain health and size and reducing dementia risks as people age.

Nutrition: Ultra-processed Food Ads Play on Our Emotions

Ultra-processed food ads on TV and social media may trigger your emotions, making you believe you’ll be happier if you eat them.

Mind-Body: Self-Compassion Aids Weight Loss Efforts

New research suggests that self-compassion increases a person’s self-control over exercise and eating behaviors.

Recipe: Salsa Verde Chicken

Research showed that higher consumption of magnesium-rich foods, like this salsa verde chicken, was linked to better brain health.

Fitness Handout: Yoga for Diabetes

From the moment she was diagnosed with diabetes, Alyssa’s life revolved around regular checkups, timely medication, and rigorous dietary restrictions.