What is work-life balance (WLB)? And, can we even truly achieve it? There is no exact definition that’s mutually agreed upon for WLB. However, for the purpose of this article, let’s consider two main work domains in life: work and personal. Both are equally important, and (in an ideal world) neither should be sacrificed. Let’s now add the layer of being in law enforcement, where you are frequently expected to put your jobs first (first responders are literally the first to respond, as their titles describe). Law enforcement personnel are generally also viewed as having two families: their “work family” and their “home family,” and not enough space for the rest of their “personal” time and commitments.

“Work-life balance” is coined as a more encompassing term than work-family life balance, as the latter doesn’t completely encapsulate all that our personal lives involve. Do you ever feel like there just isn’t enough time in the day? When I ask my LASD clients what they would do with a few extra hours in the day, I usually get one of two responses — “more OT” or “more sleep.” Sound familiar? However, neither of these provides one the opportunity to do things they enjoy or to do other personal things of interest.

WLB is so important for a number of reasons. As I’m sure you’ve heard over time, self-care is extremely important. Self-care could take the form of anything that ensures your well-being, promotes health and even helps you avoid becoming ill. It includes anything and everything from nourishing our bodies with healthy foods, getting enough sleep, moving enough for our bodies, spending time with important people, a trip to the dentist, seeing your primary care physician and/or your mental health therapist or even sitting on the couch staring at the wall if that is what your mind and/or body need to help you recover.

Law enforcement personnel rarely have much of a say in their workday. Their shifts are pretty regimented with little “wiggle room,” and it can be very unpredictable in terms of not knowing what calls or tasks might come up, how they might react/feel, etc. However, as best as you can, you can always fit in 30 seconds or more of self-care throughout the shift, of course, depending on what is going on. You can take 30 seconds to use some grounding exercises, meaning exercises you can do to bring yourself into contact with the present moment, like focusing on deep belly breathing for 30 seconds, noticing what you are seeing, hearing, smelling, touching and tasting in those 30 seconds, etc. You can also try to nourish yourself by eating something nutritious (not talking energy drinks here!) or taking 30 seconds to take a few steps away from your station and back.

At home, law enforcement personnel have a little more leeway with their days and choices. This might not sound super exciting, but literally scheduling your days off could be of so much assistance that it’s worth the hassle of trying to plug in appointments when you already feel like you want to go home and “numb out.” Having a master family calendar with the family members’ individual appointments could be helpful to visualize. Similarly, blocking out time in your day for your self-care (whatever that may look like) could be helpful as well. You can even block out time for procrastination! If you know you have to get to something but feel unable to, block out time to procrastinate and not think about whatever it is you have to do. This can help with those feelings of guilt that could come about soon after, and it can even have the opposite effect in that it can help increase your motivation to get it done!

One important piece in all this is including your family and friends in these conversations. You can absolutely sit them down to let them know what it is that you need for your self-care, and together, you can all come up with plans to make sure the housework is being done while also doing your own thing that helps you get some of that energy and motivation back, helping you feel more refreshed.

WLB helps us increase productivity both at home and at work, it helps improve our relationships with ourselves and others, it helps improve our mental, emotional and physical health, and it helps us feel happier and more content in life while also feeling rested. If you’d like to speak more about this, such as to help you create your individualized self-care plan, feel free to reach out to the Psychological Services Bureau (PSB). PSB provides support to all members of the Sheriff’s Department. If you would like a confidential appointment or consultation with a PSB psychologist to discuss ways to improve your work-life balance, and support employees and supervisors, please call the Psychological Services Bureau at (213) 738-3500. To obtain additional information, you may also visit our intranet site (lasd.sharepoint.com/sites/lasd_intranet/SitePages/psb.aspx).