I did a FB live on this topic this week and wanted to share it with you because I think it is a topic that is quite common.
A few years back, I had the realization that I wasn’t receiving the rest that I could be getting. It wasn’t about how much rest I was getting. It was about how I was resting.
When I had adrenal fatigue, I knew logically that getting rest was imperative. I was sleeping 12 hours a night, having naps during the day and I was still tired. I wasn’t resting in the way that I needed to.
One of the reasons I wasn’t resting as well as I could is because of a belief I had. Because my pattern in the past had been pushing myself, overdoing and achieving to prove my worth, I believed that if I was not “doing” then I was being lazy.
So even though I was lying down resting because I know I needed to, I would still be thinking that I should be doing something. Taking time for myself and not checking off the to do list was not proving my value or worth. My value was attached to what I was doing instead of who I was being. That’s what I thought.
I wasn’t giving myself full on permission to rest. What I know now is that rest and rejuvenation are not a luxury. It’s not about working really really hard and then resting. It’s not about having to deserve it. They aren’t a luxury. They are a necessity.
It’s important to keep filling our tank and replenishing or we end up in resentment, burnout and not really giving a shit!
So even though I was resting my body, I hadn’t given myself full permission to and my mind kept thinking about what I should do instead. My body was resting but my mind wasn’t.
I was also not very present. If I was thinking about the past or worrying about the future, I was up in my head and not in the present moment. Presence is being in your body, being in tune with what is going on inside of you and allowing yourself to be quiet. That’s when we receive the messages from our innate body wisdom and we hear our soul and the divine speaking to us. It’s not when we are rushing around being busy.
True resting is giving yourself full permission to do so without judgement, being present in the moment allowing yourself to fully let go and resting both your body and your mind.
Half-assed rest is judging yourself for resting, thinking about what you should be doing instead and not being present in your body.
I notice that when I still engage in the habit of half-assed rest, I will be lying in bed resting my body but will still be on my phone. Nothing changes in how my body is feeling. There is a level of tension still in my body.
When I put my phone down, allow my mind to rest and just breathe, my body relaxes at a whole other level and I receive the rejuvenation deeply. If my mind is engaged, I’m not fully relaxing into my body.
Rest and multitasking do not mesh!
The benefits of giving yourself full permission to rest with presence are feeling more grounded, more connected, more centred, more peaceful and relaxed, more open to receive and your in your heart.
I don’t feel that with half-assed rest.
The invitation is to look at how you are resting. Are you getting half-assed rest? Maybe you aren’t resting at all. Without judging yourself, what small changes can you make so that you can receive rest that rejuvenates you deeply and fills your tank?
Much love,
Glenda