Schedule the Joy Date: A Nervous System Reset for the Holidays
Weekly Dose of Work Recovery Vol. 11.26.25
“Joy is not self-indulgence; it’s self-preservation.” - Audre Lorde
With all the giving, hosting, planning, wrapping, cooking, and holding-everything-together energy at play right now, it’s far too easy to forget that you’re a human being with your own need for relief and delight.
So here’s your wellbeing friendly PSA: You don't have to earn your rest or joy after you've done all the things for everyone else. You've already done enough.
To ground yourself in that truth, schedule a joy date with yourself this holiday weekend. No one is going to give you the time, you have to actively reclaim it.
What's a Joy Date? It's a commitment to pick one thing that brings you joy and serves no one else but you this weekend.
Not your work.
Not your family.
Not the Google or social algorithm.
And no, it cannot be social scrolling or crossing one more thing off the to do list.
Because your nervous system deserves something real and tangible that you love.
Maybe it’s a slow morning with a book.
Maybe it’s a long drive with music you loved at 16.
Maybe it’s baking something only you love because you want to taste it.
Maybe it’s a walk where you leave your phone at home.
Maybe it’s a nap or a bath that is gloriously unproductive.
Whatever it is, schedule it. Honor it. Let it exist without apology.
I’ll never ask you to do something I’m not also willing to do, so here’s what my Joy Date looks like this week:
We're heading to Duluth for the light display this weekend, so I'm going to commit to 10 uninterrupted minutes in the sauna to sit, breathe, and meditate to remember what peace and quiet feels like
And I'm also committing to a bonus Joy Date by bringing my journal and writing three full pages on “How Good Can It Get in 2026?” full space to let myself imagine the very best case outcomes while listening to the waves crash outside. No pressure, just possibility.
Joy is not a luxury. It’s your sustainability and work recovery plan.
— Bree
P.S. Pssst…I haven't forgotten about the Soul Goal work, so sign up now because details will be dropping after Thanksgiving for the LIVE workshop Your 2026 Soul Goal Reset. If you want to uncover your own aligned, soul goals to support your financial new year, join the Soul Goal Session waitlist for this free Executive Unschool workshop.
This Week's Did You Know? Joy Is Felt in the Body, Not the Mind
Joy doesn’t start in your head—it starts in your body. Neuroscience shows that those first sparks of warmth, lightness, and ease come from your limbic system and vagal pathways long before your brain starts narrating what’s happening. You don’t think your way into joy; your body feels it, and your mind simply catches up. And it's why bringing your presence to joy through a joy date is essential. Gotta make time for the body to feel JOY!
Source: What Emotional Body Maps Reveal, BBC Science Focus
Links & Resources We Love Right Now
A listen: Rest as resistance. The ultimate power move is to give yourself rest even when it's inconvenient or uncomfortable as outlined in this conversation with author of a book on a Nap Ministry.
A learn: A short week funny quip – how do you professionally say FAFO (f*ck around and find out)? Please test your assumption and take note of the results. Bahaha!
A shoutout: Seeing the Grinch R.O.M.O. meme this week was the permission I needed to take time for me this week even though I was out sick part of last week. ROMO says, it's okay to say no.
Something I love: This beautiful poem for Thanksgiving. “If you thank your mind, it will relax. If you thank your heart, it will open. If you thank your past, it will integrate. If you thank your symptoms, they will heal. If you thank your shadow, it will vanish. If you thank your life, it will transform. If you thank yourself, the light will dawn.” - Matt Kahn
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. I'm so grateful for you, dear reader.
