Rest - March Update

I figured it’s time for a little update on incorporating rest into my life this year, so here goes.

Rest is my word of the year for 2023. Basically, I am trying to be intentional in figuring out what helps me feel rested mentally, physically, and emotionally + doing more of those things, hopefully, = recover from burnout! 

The internet has a lot to say about rest. The different types of rest, how to rest, what ruins rest, how to prepare for rest, blah blah blah.

After reviewing the selection of information that Pinterest curated for me, I decided to focus on physical rest: get more sleep, mental rest: not working a traditional job, emotional rest: not feeling guilty for unproductive time, sensory rest: creating quiet, low light, calm spaces when possible, and creative rest: spending more time outside with Lucy appreciating nature, enjoying art, literature, and music.

Each day I try to do five things: 1. read, 2. drink a cup of coffee, 3. drink three large cups of water, 4. get 8 hours of sleep, 5. meditate. 

Reading is a way for me to get creative rest, coffee is delicious, makes me feel happy, and most days I drink it while I’m enjoying a calm, quiet space and listening to a book or music, so emotional, sensory, and creative rest all at once. Drinking water and 8 hours of sleep is physical rest, and meditation is like all types of rest available.

I almost always have coffee, and I read a decent amount of the time, but drinking enough water, getting enough sleep, and meditating are a lot harder for me to accomplish. 

I have a hard time falling asleep most nights and sometimes I have trouble staying asleep. So I’ve been trying to take naps on days when my nighttime sleep is really rough.

I also love beverages, and like variety, so water has a lot of competition. It’s not my fault we have so many good options available. 

And meditating gets skipped because I just plain forget about it. When I remember, I get into a nice little groove, until I get out of the groove, and then who knows when I’ll pick up meditation again. I’m not in the groove right now. 

So that’s what’s happening with rest, and ways I am trying to improve the quality of my rest. 

Do you have any tips for feeling rested? Let me know in the comments.