Commuter Recovery: Decompressing Between Work and Home
There’s probably a small window of time every day where you’re between roles: no longer at work but not at home. For you, this might mean a 20-mile drive home, or something as simple as a walk from your office to your living room. While most of us spend this commute distracting ourselves from the stressful day by doom-scrolling, replaying a tense event or encounter, or already mentally drafting tomorrow’s to-do list, we can instead use this time to thoughtfully decompress. Here’s why that’s so important:
The research on commuting shows that it can take a big toll. A study of nearly 3,800 in Montreal found that longer commutes were linked to significantly higher self-reported stress (Legrain et al.). Even a modest 10-mile commute has been shown to raise the risk of anxiety, depression, and social isolation.
But this doesn’t mean that commuting has to be damaging. In fact, it can be quite the opposite. Psychological researchers have posited that “transition rituals” — small, habitual actions like changing clothes or following a set routine — are important to help cue the mind to exit one role and enter fully into another (Desrochers and Sargent). Research found that those who built in such rituals experienced less conflict between their work and home lives, decreasing their stress. So, you can use commuting to your benefit by mindfully guiding your mind to switch roles.
A Practice for the In-Between (5 minutes, any commute)
- Exit: As you leave your workspace, silently name one thing that’s done for today, even if your list isn’t finished. Now, tell yourself that “Work is over for today,” even if it feels untrue at first. This shouldn’t take more than 30 seconds.
- Anchor: If you’re walking to your car, biking, or even driving, let your body do what it’s doing without narrating it in your head. Notice your hands on the wheel, your feet on the ground, the rhythm of movement. Enter the realm of your senses, paying attention to the temperature of the air or the tapestry of clouds in the sky. Use this as the signal to your brain that a boundary is being crossed.
- Breathe: Start gently lengthening your breath, letting go of thoughts that drift through your awareness and the tension stored in your soft tissue. Keep going until your mind and body feels relaxed.
- Enter: Before you walk through your door, decide how you want to show up on the other side — not a whole plan, just an idea: present, soft, open.
Conclusion
While commutes can be challenging, you can choose whether the time works for you or against you. A five-minute ritual won’t erase a hard day, but it can be the difference between carrying your work into your home and actually arriving there.
