Rest up

It’s easier said than done

Rest and nonrest

According to research, the state of rest doesn’t occur from the activity itself, but rather from when there is harmony between our feelings, motivations, and actions. This harmony cultivates calm, confidence, and belonging. By contrast, the state of nonrest is defined by <dis>harmony of our feelings, motivations, and actions, which leads to tension and energy depletion.

We are continuously moving between rest and nonrest. When we feel tense and fatigued, we should take it as a cue to restore harmony.

Keys to foster rest

We can cultivate harmony between our feelings, motivations, and actions by embracing the following concepts.

Natural rhythms

Align with the natural rhythms of the day, month, and season. For example, take a rest as you transition from one task to another in the day and honour how you feel in the winter versus the summer.

Letting go

You don’t have to do everything yourself. Trust and have confidence in others, allowing them to help you.

Safe relationships

Being accepted without judgment and not having to behave in a certain way is conducive to rest. Invest your time and effort into beneficial relationships and walk away from toxic ones.

Pleasure and creativity

Appreciate the beauty in nature, music, and art. Take the time to not only to take in and enjoy the beauty, but to also answer the call to create what you’re compelled to create.

Feeling rested

Mental-emotional health

We feel mental fatigue after prolonged periods of cognitive activity. Mental fatigue is a psychobiological state involving cognitive decline, reduced accuracy, and slower reaction time. Symptoms may include temperamental depression, moodiness, and changeability, which may create relationship difficulties and challenges at work; it can sometimes lead to substance abuse.

Rest Rx: Research shows that listening to music and binaural beats helps ease mental fatigue. Having a regular meditation practice may also reduce the negative effects of mental fatigue.

Physical health

When we’re physically fatigued, we can experience symptoms ranging from insomnia, chronic pain, digestive issues, heart conditions, and gynecological problems. While there isn’t a biological explanation for every physical symptom of fatigue, researchers have developed an umbrella term for exhaustion-related symptoms, called persistent physical symptoms (PPS).

Rest Rx: Research shows that nonsleep deep rest (NSDR) improves physical readiness, exercise recovery, tension, emotional balance, negative affect, and overall stress. In this study, the NSDR was elicited by lying down on a mat in a dark, quiet room and doing 10 minutes of guided meditation exercises.

By Cassie Irwin, ND