I’m going to be straight with you from the off here. It’s 11am on a Wednesday and I’m writing this in bed. The cat is asleep next to me, a snoring pretzel curled in on himself, the picture of peace. I have my one year old nephew’s cold and in my infinite wisdom this morning I thought I’d go to (my favourite) Body Combat class to see if it made me feel any better. Reader, let me tell you. Mentally, punching and kicking the air for 45 minutes made me feel much better. Physically, it made me feel much worse. So I came home, showered and climbed back into bed to write this.
This morning got me thinking about rest a lot. How we do it, what permission we have to give ourselves to do it. How we can embrace it in a world which seems determined to quantify our worth by our productivity. The cat, Fred, is very good at rest. Me on the other hand? Not so much. I often try to push through things when my body is telling me to take a time out and I wondered if you do too?
There are seven types of rest. Some we may be more aware of than others. Some may feel abstract or esoteric. But when we cultivate rest in all it’s different shapes and sizes, it can help us feel more effectively renewed. The seven types of rest are:
Physical
Mental
Emotional
Spiritual
Social
Creative
Sensory
Understanding each of these can help us change the way we approach our wellbeing. When I’m working with coaching clients, particularly around Storyteller Wellbeing (for charities who work with individuals as case studies), I talk a lot about taking care of your SHED. That’s sleep, hydration, exercise and diet. When we take care of our SHED we’re more appropriately resourced for whatever the world might throw at us. When we’re tired, hungry, haven’t had a glass of water for hours or haven’t moved our body in a way that works for us, we’re likely to be grumpy and groggy. But I think it’s also important to add rest into this acronym too. Maybe I’ll start talking about looking after your SHRED? Not quite as catchy but yanno.
Types of rest
There are loads of factors to each of the different approaches to rest. Physical rest refers to getting good quality sleep - but if that isn’t available, relaxing your muscles, lying down and even gentle movement can be helpful for recovery from daily life. Have you ever done a yoga class that’s felt as restorative as a 45 min nap? That’s the sort of movement that can be supportive physical rest.
Our brains are always processing information. Constantly whirring with decisions and problems and to-do lists. This relentless activity can be completely exhausting. But there are ways to give your brain a break if you notice you’re in need of some mental rest. I’ve already written about my meditation ~journey~ (LADS I’m on 102 days and counting) but this kind of mindful approach can go a long way to reducing mental fatigue. Taking short breaks during your work day, finding activities that help you discover a sense of flow, where time basically loses all meaning and your mind is able to wander freely, can help you rest mentally. The impacts of that? Enhanced creativity and productivity. When it’s quiet, you function better.
Have you ever bitten your tongue when you really wanted to speak out? Have you squashed emotions down to make space for others’? If the answer is yes, you’ll know how incredibly draining this kind of emotional labour is. Emotional rest is the antidote to it - allowing yourself to express your emotions, being honest (with yourself and others) about how we’re feeling and seeking the correct support is one of the most resourcing things you can do.
From your phone vibrating in your pocket, to ads on the street, music blasting from passing cars our world is a sensory overload. That’s not even taking into account the constant demands for attention tech has created for us. Turning off electronic devices, not using the Big Light or getting out into nature allows us to embrace sensory rest.
I think about creative rest a lot. The author and all round guru Julia Cameron (talk to me about The Artist’s Way, I’ll never shut up) dictates that anyone seeking more creativity in their lives should go on Artist Dates regularly - to fill up their creative cup. We engage in creative rest when we notice the beauty of the world around us. We can find it in art, nature, music, poetry, film and TV. Even if you don’t consider yourself a creative person (though I’d argue everyone is creative), engaging in creative rest can help us feel inspired, solve problems, develop new ideas and - perhaps most importantly - bring JOY.
We’re inherently social as human beings. We LOVE connection and vibing off other people can be an excellent way to fill up our cup. But. Sometimes that can come at a cost. In the last week, I was out Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. I travelled to Yorkshire for a flying visit over the weekend to see my family (and the cold sharing culprit, Ashwin). Then on Monday I went to see Cabaret at the theatre. What a brilliant, brilliant week of events. But when it came to going to choir last night, I couldn’t face it. I was ‘overly-peopled’. I needed to breathe. So Chris and I sat at home in contented silence watching Grey’s Anatomy. I needed social rest. But this is also about cultivating relationships that don’t feel effortful and distancing ourselves from the relationships that feel h a r d.
Spiritual rest can be achieved by finding meaning in your life. We can take spiritual rest by connecting with things that are greater than ourselves. Meditation, prayer and community involvement all help us get spiritual rest. And when we’re spiritually well rested, we can find a renewed sense of calm and a different perspective on life.
How to rest
Today, I’ll mostly be engaging in physical rest. Because that is what my body is demanding of me. But I will be getting out of bed at some point to go for a gentle walk. I’ll be turning my phone and my laptop off for an hour and curling up with my book on the sofa. And I’ll be really honest with myself about what I need. All of this gentle attention to my approach to rest will hopefully mean tomorrow I’m no longer a sneezy mess, but a little more replenished and ready to take on whatever the next few days or weeks has in store.
How are you going to cultivate some rest this week?
What I’ve Been Working On
Over the past few months, I’ve been working with my pals at CoppaFeel! on a project around the language we use when we're talking/writing about breast cancer. We did a bunch of research and I've created a set of media guidelines as a result of what we've learned. This guide isn’t about policing what we say or how we say it. But it is about making sure we talk sensitively about breast cancer whilst still having an impact. It has been an absolute gift to work on this project. I’m excited for the guidelines to launch but if you’re interested in seeing some of the work, let me know.
I’m also thinking a lot about Creative Health and general wellbeing at the moment and how I can share all the things in my brain with people in an accessible way. I want to make people aware of just how beneficial creativity can be fore your wellbeing, so I’ve started creating some downloadable digital products to help people tap into that. I’m also working on turning my course Words for Wellbeing into a programme for everyone, not just corporate clients.
To keep doing this work in a meaningful way, I need to increase my reach. I want to cultivate a community over here on Substack, so if you like my work and my writing and think you know someone else who will, please do share with them. Anyone who signs up will get my downloadable Six Simple Ways to Improve Your Wellbeing guide for free!