Permission to Rest
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Hi, I'm glad you're here with me.
Let's start by taking a breath together. Take a breath in… and out.
I wanted to start with something simple, something true: You don't have to earn your rest.
You don't have to finish your mile long to-do list.
You don't have to prove how tired you are.
You don't have to justify why your body or your spirit needs a slower pace today or any day.
You don't have to explain why you're providing these things to your body.
You're allowed to rest simply because you're human. Because your body tells you what it needs in energy, not in calendars. Because surviving in this world, especially in a sensitive or an unwell body, already asks so much of you. And I know… I know how loud the voices can be.
That inner voice that's saying, “But I didn't do enough today,” or “But everyone else is still going,” or “I shouldn't be this tired. Why am I like this?” Maybe it’s even, “Why can't I push through like I used to be able to do?” Those voices talk in my head a lot also. They did it today, and they're probably going to do it tomorrow. Summertime is like that for me, but maybe it's wintertime for you.
Whatever you're going through, that voice has been shaped by a world that measures your worth in how productive you are and how much you can rest in scarcity or urgency.
But what if we measured it differently?
What if rest wasn't the reward at the end of a long day, but a resource that makes it possible to move through your life with softness and gentleness towards yourself?
You don't need to push yourself to the edge of burnout or over the edge to deserve a nap.
You don't need to collapse to be allowed to pause.
You're allowed to rest in the middle of the mess, in the middle of the day, in the middle of still figuring it out, before things go completely out of your control or the overwhelm takes place, or the panic sets in.
You're allowed to take time
That rest can look like anything:
Maybe it’s laying down with your eyes closed. You don't have to take a nap if you don't want to, but maybe just breathing slowly in and out.
Maybe it looks like drinking a cup of tea slowly instead of multitasking or having lunch away from your desk instead of working through lunch.
Maybe it looks like journaling for a few minutes about how you're actually doing instead of how you think you should be doing.
Or maybe it's simply sitting in the stillness and letting your nervous system settle. If the weather permits, this is a great thing to do outside to just sit and hear and feel your environment around you. Feel the energy, smell the smells, hear the sounds, and just kind of take it in a little bit so that everything else calms down in your mind.
These things aren't being lazy.
These things aren’t being lazy. They’re being present.
It’s taking care of your body and your mind. It’s you building a life that doesn’t ignore your energy but honors it.
Because here’s the truth: you don’t have to do more to be more. And you’re not behind, even if your day looked nothing like you hoped.
We all have days like that. Some of us have days like that more often than others. That happens to me a lot, I feel; however, it doesn’t mean that you or I is behind. It just means that maybe we need to adapt tomorrow to be a little bit different, right? Or maybe we need to be a little bit more accommodating of our needs for the specific day.
So if you need a sign, here it is. You're allowed to stop, to soften, to care for yourself without feeling guilty,
Every day, not just today, not just tomorrow, but every day that you live. Rest isn't a break from your life, it's a part of living it well.
If this message speaks to something inside of you, I hope that you'll carry it with you throughout the week and whatever times feel hard and overwhelming and you need a rest. You could write it on a sticky note or repeat it like an affirmation.
When the old scripts start saying, “Oh, you can push through, you need to do just a little bit more.”
Try responding back, “I don’t have to earn my rest.” Let that sink it.
It might be hard for a little while until you start practicing, but it’s true. Once you're able to remind yourself of that on a regular basis, you'll start feeling freer to take care of your body and what it needs.
I'm so glad you're here, and I'm really proud of you for choosing gentleness and softness and slowness, even when it feels unfamiliar and maybe not the mainstream thing to do. Ultimately, this is a great way to live and your body and your spirit and your mind will thank you along this journey.
Take care, and I’ll talk to you soon.
What Next
Write yourself a reminder or repeat the affirmation/mantra, “I don’t have to earn my rest.”
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