INDIANAPOLIS — Working from home can have its challenges. Sure, it beats a long commute and getting dressed up every day, but for those whose home is now their office, it might feel like the work never ends.
Lindsey de las Alas, a near east side mom of three who's playing employee, mom, teacher and leader, is looking for ways to reconnect -- by unplugging.
She has been working alongside her second and sixth graders, who have been e-learning through Indianapolis Public Schools. She also has a 3-year-old at home. This is all happening while de las Alas is answering emails and taking phone calls, working over 40 hours a week in recruiting.
"Since the pandemic started, we see each other all the time, but we're connecting less than ever," de las Alas said.
If she's not on her phone or computer, de las Alas is helping her kids with tech support, such as logging them in, making sure their tablets are connected and keeping up with coursework. Technology has taken over their home.
"You leave the office, you're done for the day. You leave on Friday, you're done for the weekend. But in these times, that's just not necessarily the case anymore," de las Alas said.
It's also the hours she puts in. Yes, she can work in clothes she's comfortable in and not wear shoes, but de las Alas said she needs to make up the time she misses helping her kids.
"There were more boundaries to my day and definitely a lot more time for quality time as family [prior to the pandemic]," de las Alas said.
Dr. Mitesh Patel, a psychiatrist with Ascension St. Vincent, came up with the following solutions: remind yourself you're not alone, take time for yourself and spend quality time away from those phones and laptops.
"The more we spend time on those devices, I think the more we get sucked into that world," Patel said.
That's what's happening with de las Alas when she feels she needs to work late.
"Sometimes it's midnight, and my husband will be like, 'Who are you texting?'" She said she now takes those calls and text, where pre-pandemic, she would most likely wait until she's back in the office.
That's why Patel recommends still structuring your day as if you were in the office.
"Perhaps it might be good for people to have a separate space for their work so they can be in the mindset of being at work when they're in that space and then when they're not in that space, they can be at home," Patel said.
He said to look at your screen time usage since you don't want devices to act as an "electronic pacifier" of sorts.
It's why de las Alas is changing her habits.
"If I decide I'm done for the day, I can't look at my laptop anymore, and it's more of a hassle to drag it out," de las Alas said.
Now, she schedules family time -- free from devices.
"We're going to go to a drive-in movie together. We're going to go to the park. Because otherwise, it just doesn't happen," de las Alas said.
The University of California, Berkeley backed up Patel's advice on the benefits of unplugging, while also citing a more present-moment awareness, improved sleep and deeper connections.