Allowing Yourself to Rest
It’s the summer and things have slowed down for the most part, but it is very easy to find yourself with more work than anticipated. So, this week, I’m talking about rest.
Recently, I have been bombarding myself with small tasks and meetings in addition to my duathlon training and practicing. While this started off ok, it has slowly become not ok. In the past few days, I have felt levels of stress that have managed to lead to a mini phase of burnout. I’ve been avoiding meetings and correspondence with the organizations I’m involved with. I’ve found myself unable to find motivation to practice. I’ve disengaged from monitoring my social media postings. I’ve avoided writing this post as long as possible. I’ve literally been staring at the ceiling because I haven’t wanted to do anything. With my duathlon over, I’ve cut down my training in order to allow my body its time to recover, but it has been stressing me out not to have my morning workout as usual.
With all of these signs of burnout going on, I am still on edge about taking the needed time off. This is partially because I have been on three trips in the past month which felt like vacations, but also partially because I feel as if I am letting people down by not completing these tasks. In the last day of reflecting and speaking with my family and therapists, I’ve concluded that I do need to completely take time to myself. Vacations in which I’m responding to work emails, driving 13 hours straight, being inconsistent with my sleep schedule, biking 37mi, walking over 20,000 steps a day, and running a duathlon do not actually count as rest (gasp!). And while on the topic of what’s not rest, certainly writing this post and editing a podcast goes against my point here, but regardless, I’m working from my experience to help you all out.
The Importance of Rest
First thing’s first, rest is important. Everyone needs to have time completely off. In today’s American culture, rest is not valued. People are expected to be responding to work communications 24/7, planning new projects, or striving towards the next goal—even sleep is not considered a priority. This thinking, however, is incredibly flawed, and in order to be a functional human, you must give your brain and body a chance to rest. It is during rest that your body and brain do all the hard work. Your brain stores information as you sleep, and your body performs its adaptations to your workouts on rest days. Without rest, your body and mind won’t be able to perform at their best. These advantages of rest focus on taking time to get enough sleep or throwing a rest day into your schedule, but longer stretches of time off are significantly beneficial to everyone in order to prevent burnout.
Burnout is defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “exhaustion of physical or emotional strength or motivation usually as a result of prolonged stress or frustration.” The most common stresses we encounter on a daily basis are the small ones that don’t seem like a big deal. Some of these stresses are phone notifications and frustrating interactions. For those with marginalized identities, microaggressions also add up into this mix.
If you hit burnout, it’s already too late, so finding time to rest is incredibly important.
How to Allow Yourself to Rest
It’s very difficult to allow yourself to rest in a society that doesn’t value it. Here are a few thoughts that help me feel better about taking my time off.
1. Realize you’re replaceable
Yes, this is harsh, but you are easily replaceable in whatever position you currently hold. There are plenty of other people who can do your job just as well as you do, and whether you take a break from your job or end up dropping it because of burnout, people will find someone else to do it for you. Since you are replaceable in your position, it is not worth sacrificing your health and well-being for it. You should prioritize taking care of yourself in order to be there for those who truly need you like your friends and family.
2. Think of efficiency
Resting now can save you from putting in hours of unproductive work. It is better to take a day or two off now than to work inefficiently for weeks later.
3. Focus on consequences of no rest
Remember burnout. You want to avoid burnout. Burnout is a point of exhaustion in which it’s nearly impossible to accomplish anything. If you don’t take the time to rest, you will hit burnout eventually and won’t be able to function.
Ways to Rest
Once you’ve been able to allow yourself to rest, it’s another hurdle to figure out how to actually rest. Here are some ways to aid you into your rest phase:
1. Disengage from social media
Close your social media apps for a few days. Social media, while not work, takes up a lot of mental and emotional energy. In order to fully recharge, consider letting this go and find something else that’s more relaxing to take up the time.
2. Turn off notifications
Just like social media takes up mental and emotional energy, notifications do the same. When notifications are on, you are never fully free—you are just waiting for the next alert so that you can check email or an app. Turn off your notifications for a day or two in order to fully disconnect. You’ll be amazed with how much the small notifications actually contribute to your daily stress.
3. Inform people that you’re on a break
Rather than disappear off the face of the Earth for a few days, let those who should know be aware that you’re taking time to rest. This accomplishes two things. First, it allows your coworkers, friends, and/or family to know that you are alright and won’t be as responsive as normal. Second, it sends an implication that you don’t want to be bothered for non-emergency matters; this will aid you in turning off notifications.
4. Partake in your favorite pastime
Remember that thing you used to enjoy doing before life got in the way? Try to find that activity again and do it uninterrupted. For me, that is fiction writing. I haven’t written fiction in ages because I have been bombarded with work. When I sit down to write fiction again on my breaks, however, it feels heavenly. For others, this could be watching TV, gardening, playing a different instrument, or simply existing without distraction. Find something that works for you and do it!
5. Treat yourself
Finally, find a way to treat yourself. You have worked hard, and you have the right to something you want. This can be a trip, shopping spree, new instrument, or anything else you have been holding back on. I’ve mentioned this in a previous post, but be careful to make sure this is a treat and not a reward. A treat you get because you want it; a reward you get because you feel you did something to earn it. Rewards can develop a habit chain that gets rid of the internal motivation to do an activity. Treats just keep you feeling human.
So take some time to yourself this summer! I hope this post has resonated with you. While on the topic of rest, I will be taking the rest of July off from regular blog posts in order to focus on starting my podcast and moving to Baltimore. Please check out my podcast when it goes live—I will make a brief post with the launch of the first episode. As always, share this with others and let me know if this resonated with you or if you have any topic suggestions. Have a great month!