Waking up every morning, giving yourself a thrust to survive another tiring and demotivating day—thinking why you need to hustle when you can just lie down on bed, binge-watch your favorite Netflix show, or sleep all day, right?

Our minds sometimes become an abyss—as we delve into it while things slowly become unpredictable and we are losing control of them—stressful workload, toxic family, responsibilities, which push us sometimes to just give up.

It is completely understandable if oftentimes you feel uninspired, hopeless, dull, or lost in the middle of the pandemic. The world is currently in a great doldrums as it’s facing a wreak havoc caused by COVID-19 outbreak. But now—more than ever, is not the right time to give up.

I get that our generation is full of uncertainty and struggle. Indeed, our parents did their best in raising us, but we were astronomically gas-lighted by the mindset of most elders that these are all just in the mind and get over with the drama. Right now, everyone is busy saving themselves as they face their own battle, and the first step of winning them is to acknowledge the struggle and burden. Second? Take a break.

Young heart, it is still early to push yourself and strive so hard to get things done. Never give yourself a misconception that just because you are taking a break means you are wasting your time. In fact, taking a break helps you to become more productive and function your brain well.

According to Forbes, taking a break increases productivity. Although taking breaks might sound counterintuitive when it comes to boosting ones productivity, it’s one of the best way to do so.

“Employees gain focus and energy after stepping away from their desk. A lunch break can help prevent and unproductive, mid-afternoon slump.” Forbes said.

Also, Forbes claims that taking a break improves mental well-being. As stress is vastly common in different workplace, and utterly affects the employees. Hence, taking some time away from your desk and go for a walk (or pet your dog/cat as quarantine is still strictly being implemented), buy your coffee, or enjoy your lunch is necessary to relieve yourself from stress and keep yourself sane.

The key is keeping yourself balanced. It is indeed tough to live these times. In comparison to the devastation and hardship the world has gone through, this pandemic is indeed one of the toughest one. And we are being affected by it. So it’s okay to take the action you need to feel okay again. It’s okay to take away from social media for a while. It’s okay to file a vacation leave and just sleep all day, read books or play with your pet. It’s okay to reach out to your friends and family. It’s okay to spend time perfecting that cake recipe. It’s okay to take a break.

You might sometimes feel like you haven’t earned enough opportunity to take a rest. You might feel like you need to do more, work harder to prove that you deserve one. But when it comes to taking care of yourself—you cannot just procrastinate and do it some other time. Everyone deserves a break. You can spend some time to recharge and rest—but please, don’t give up.