Has your employer allowed you to work from home? Working remotely comes with plenty of perks, but the adjustment period can be tough, particularly if you’re in perimenopause or just now entering menopause. When you work and live in the same place, you can end up extending your workday into the evening and letting go of your former healthy routines, which can exacerbate symptoms.

Spruce Up Your Wardrobe

Fifty One Apparel, a British online retailer, has the perfect wardrobe items to provide comfort during your working day.

When you work from home, it’s easy to throw on sweatpants and a t-shirt every day rather than making the effort to dress up. While comfort is paramount in the work place, it is well documented that if we look as good as we feel our performance and overall sense of wellbeing is heightened.

Fifty One Apparel uses space certified technology, originally developed with NASA to help regulate the body’s temperature so, if you are prone to temperature swings or hot flushes, these clothes can help manage these surges, boosting confidence and ensuring comfort throughout the day. The range is designed to be flexible and look equally as good with a pair of jeans or under a tailored jacket, taking the hassle out of dressing for the home office and wardrobe dilemmas for those online meetings.

Focus on Fitness

If you’re sitting in front of your computer for most of the day, you need to block off some time to work out. Exercising will help you feel more productive and engaged in your work, and it’s highly beneficial for lessening symptoms of menopause. You could pause several times per day to do some simple stretches, or you could head outside for a run to get some fresh air. To stay committed to your fitness routine, put exercise on top of your daily to-do list.

Eat Healthy at Home

After a long day of working from home, do you ever feel tempted to put your feet up and order take-out rather than cooking? It’s understandable, but eating healthy can help you feel your best while working remotely. Set aside some time every weekend to meal prep to make your workweek easier — Cooking Light recommends investing in glass storage containers first!

Try to incorporate ingredients into your cooking that are proven to benefit your mental health, like sweet potatoes, legumes, leafy greens, and avocados. Aim to choose healthy snacks for your workday, too, like whole-grain crackers with peanut butter or pita bread with hummus.

Set Boundaries

When you work remotely, it can be hard to set boundaries around your workday. You might catch yourself working when you’re not on the clock or taking random breaks to chat with your family members when you do have responsibilities. To avoid this, designate an area as your home office where you can work by yourself, and be sure to clear and declutter your workspace so as to invite more positive energy throughout your workday. Consider also investing in a reliable headset that not only allows you to work hands-free, but that also sends a signal to others in your house that you’re busy. It’s equally important to set a time to unplug at the end of the workday so that you’re not tempted to keep answering emails when you could be relaxing.

Make Time for Self-Care

Finally, it’s important to focus on self-care. Make sure that you grant yourself time to do nothing but unwind. Maybe you could read a good book, take a soothing bubble bath, watch an episode of your favorite TV show, practice a daily meditation, or write in a journal. Just choose an activity you enjoy. When you work remotely, it’s easy to push self-care to the back burner, but by making self-care a non-negotiable part of your routine, you’ll see an improvement in your mental and physical health. For those of us dealing with the complexities of menopause, taking time to de-stress is crucial!

When you began working remotely, your lifestyle likely changed significantly. And sometimes, it can be hard to stay on top of healthy habits when the line between your professional and personal life becomes blurred. Enduring the symptoms of perimenopause or menopause only compounds the difficulties. However, with these tips, you’ll be able to stay healthy and feel your best while working from home.