Self care is a hot topic these days, and I’m not just talking about face masks. There is a growing movement that underscores the importance of taking time to take care of yourself (in addition to all the other things that you already take time for). You can prevent problems down the road by taking proactive steps to ensure your health and happiness.
Source: Narzart
What are the best ways to exercise self care as a developer? Here are some quick ones to get you started.
Eye Care
I’ve been thinking about this topic since I read Sarthak's guide to protecting eyes. Here are some quick things you can do today to protect yourself:
- Invest in some glare-blocking blue tinted computer glasses like these on amazon.
- Get yourself a bouncy ball so that you can look away every so often to focus on that.
- You’ve probably already heard of flux. It automatically adjusts your screen to mirror the outdoors, so that you don’t disrupt your sleep schedule.
Hand Care
As developers, many of us rely heavily on our hands’ ability to type out code. But spending 8 hours on a keyboard can be hard on them.
- Consider investing in an ergonomic keyboard. If you’ve got a favorite call it out in the comments--there are many different styles and shapes.
- Doing these stretches just once a day or week will help prevent carpal tunnel.
Body Care
Many of us are familiar with the perils of sitting 8 hours in a desk for 5 days a week.
- Standing desks: if your office allows it, standing desks are good for you! Although claims that standing burns lots of calories have largely been refuted, standing desks can help your blood sugar return to normal faster after eating if you’ve spent more time standing, and some find them beneficial for the back/neck/shoulders.
- Regular stretching or walk breaks: Take a break and walk around! Even a short walk can have great health impacts and a walk will help improve your mood as well (see below).
Mind Care
Research suggests that short breaks between spurts of productivity can provide essential mental rest for overworked minds.
- Try using an extension like this one which enforces the pomodoro method (a system that breaks up 20 minute intervals with short periods of rest) with regular reminders.
- A walk break can improve your mood according to this piece from the NYT on the benefits of a lunchtime break. Even a short one can make you more enthusiastic, less tense, and more able to perform your job for the rest of the day.
Just for Fun
What are your best suggestions for making day-to-day life as a developer more fun?
- Customize your terminal. Here are some general guidelines to get you started.
- Colorful keyboards! Here’s a fun scrabble one.
- An office plant
What are the ways you exercise self care as a developer?
Latest comments (28)
What???? For sure the best framework and non framework is Svelte.js
Forgot others, you only need html, JavaScript and css...
I use 1 minute naps if I get stressed, some calming music and then I close my eyes while at my desk.
It’s a really nice reset switch. :)
Plants! I love 'em and they make me very happy. That coupled with a few stretch breaks does wonder to dealing with those pesky bugs 😊
Good Stuffs!
I would like to emphasize 'eye care'. Most of us don't realize just how much eye strain can affect our lives -from tired-ness to appetite to sleep; it's a domino effect.
Anecdotally, standing for part of the day has helped me with the tight hip flexors, weakened lower abdominal muscles, and pelvic tilt that resulted from previously sitting all day.
The Elbows. Particularly my left elbow. I keep my MacBook at a slight height and slope because I live in a VERY hot place and want to allow constant airflow under it (it really works to keep the inner temperature down). I also have a room fan constantly pointing to it and to my hands, which helps a lot with the heat for me as well. But my elbows are supporting the weight of my arms, and after a while they get red and painful.
The solution I found is keeping a microfiber cloth, folder over twice, to rest my elbows on. It’s soft and plushy and keeps my elbows from getting hurt. I also crocheted soft elbow covers (small versions of the ones used by skaters) so they are strapped on and keep a soft surface constantly under my elbows.
I’m not saying everybody will have the same issue, I’m saying that there might be an easy fix for some annoying or slightly painful thing you have going on. Maybe get a pillow for your back, or a stool to put your feet up on sometimes. Find out something you could add to your workstation that could help be more comfortable or avoid long term pain.
Great article, thanks.
For terminal customization take a look at ohmyzsh too
Great post! I'll try all of these at work.
Love this post!
Here's my addition:
Take a Day Off
I don't know if this is a problem for all everyone here, but for me, between work, online tutorials, and side projects, it's easy to let programming consume large chunks of my 'off time', including weekends and holidays.
I've found that forcing myself to take one day a week completely off from all forms of coding helps me avoid burn out, and get back into the grind the next day with more focus and energy.
So I try my best to take every Sunday off and give myself some much needed r&r
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