Rest is magical. While we sleep, or relax, our bodies repair damage. Rest gives our mind a break. Failure to rest can be devastating; emotionally, and physically. We can actually make ourselves sick by pressing through and forcing ourselves to over-do it.
If you go to church, this concept of rest is literally built into the foundation of faith. "Six days you labor and on the 7th day you rest." That was not a suggestion. We visit our places of worship to not only recharge spiritually, but to enjoy one another as well.
If we spend all our time buried deep in diapers, bills, work, and don't take time for ourselves, we will come to a large, brick wall remarkably quickly. Your family is lovely, but friends and those that share your faith give you more. Human beings, and mammals in general, share a deep intrinsic need for quality social time. We need to laugh with someone that "gets" us. We need to be able to have someone that we can disagree with and that will help us see things from another point of view. If we were supposed to constantly have someone agree with us, we would only live with dogs.
If you haven't taken time to yourself in a while reading this blog is a GREAT start. Here are a few other pointers that will help you find peace, before you snap like stick.
1. Find a relaxing hobby. Try fishing, coloring, cooking (for fun), wood-working, or kitting. There are more, but this is a good start.
2. Twice a year, take a FULL week if you can, and go on vacation. You don't have to leave, if you cannot afford to do so, but taking a week off of work will allow you to focus on the people you live with, the home you live in, and the breath you have been given.
3. Do some form of exercise EVERYDAY. Alternate your workouts and try new things! One day, spend an hour weeding the garden and doing half hour of yoga, the next day run a few miles, then do strength training, you get the idea. Don't limit yourself to a single routine, but move daily.
4. Get away. Twice a week, get out of your house, leave work, and GO do something productive and healthy. Volunteer at a shelter, ride a bike on a trail, wander Target for a few hours with a budget of $20.00, take your kids to the park, hike a trail, fly a kite, golf, join a social group, take up bowling, whatever, but do so AWAY from your normal life and without your family.
5. Take your vitamins! We may eat right and exercise, but if you are still tired, try increasing your vitamin D. You might be amazed to find this simple deficiency can be mood, and wellness altering.
6. Find your calm. Every single day, do something in the way of mediation. I pray, and read a devotional page, but some find calm in listening to nature, yoga, and just drinking a glass of hot milk before bed. Do something intentional every day that will center your mind, and make the next 24 hours a success for you, and worthwhile for others.
7. See a doctor! If you have trouble sleeping, and there isn't a good reason why, talk to a professional. You may need to participate in a sleep study, and get answers. Some of them, like apnea, can go undiagnosed for years and make your quality of sleep, and the sleep of those you live with compromised.
Think of your body like a watering can. If you are constantly watering others, and do not pause to "put in" for yourself, you will run out of water. I hope starting today, you will look for ways to just rest.
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