“She was an adventurer at heart, but oh how she loved drinking this tea from this mug in this chair. Oh how she loved to be home.”
Often the most challenging part of caring for ourselves is learning to truly rest when we need it.
Honestly, when I sit or lay down to rest, I either fall fully asleep or I feel guilty and as if I should be doing something else.
I am learning to redefine what rest means for me.
Whether you are an introvert, extravert, or of course as most of us are – somewhere on the spectrum in between – we all recharge in different ways.
A spa day may seem rejuvenating to some and like torture to others. A walk in the sunshine recharges me more than a nap almost any day (unless I am sick). When we give ourselves the rest that we need, we are able to give full energy and attention to the things in life we value.
Sometimes it is useful to ask ourselves what type of rest we need TODAY? Have you been staring at a screen and need to get outside for a few minutes? Have you been jumping from one social activity to another and just need a day at home in your own energy? Is your body tense from working out and would benefit from a hot bath? Rest doesn’t always mean sleeping or sitting around.
We tend to deem time scrolling on our phones or binge-watching Netflix as resting and while these things CAN be restful in their own time, they are not the only sort of rest we need when we are mentally or emotionally exhausted.
Consider: How can you truly rest your heart, body, soul and mind when you need it?
If we choose not to rest, to ignore our bodies signals, and push through anyway, we will inevitably, eventually, be hit with the “brick over the head” of burnout, exhaustion, or sickness.
We know that our bodies need to rest or we risk injury. It is the same with our minds. When we truly rest, we experience better memory and concentration as well as mental health overall, we make more aligned decisions, we build a healthier immune system, boost our metabolism, and have an overall better mood, which carries over into every other area of our life.
“Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.”
– Lao Tzu
Action Item:
Rest. Rest rest rest. Reflect on it in a journal if you want, but your only job today is to make space for yourself to truly rest in an intentional way.
Resource: Robin Sharma on Why You Should Rest More Than You Hustle (This is one of Yoga Girl’s older episodes with a guest but she has a lot of good insights on learning to rest and even navigating burnout as her episodes continue. I always listen to From the Heart on Spotify.)