Making Time For Rest and Recovery

Ancient wisdom tells us that winter is a time for rest, recovery and renewal; we only have to look around us at the example of nature to see that…

…things slow down & energy wanes, longer hours of darkness promote more sleeping than wakefulness, trees lose their leaves to conserve their resources, seeds lie dormant to protect themselves against the cold and many animals go into hibernation…

But the busyness and style of our modern-day life doesn’t allow us to take that ‘rest’ we were naturally programmed to...

…electric lights mean we don’t change our sleeping patterns to get that extra restorative sleep, we continue to juggle the demands of work and home life, digital devices and communications mean we are in a constant ‘always on’ state, AND, in December, we add on top all the demands of the 21st century Christmas season!...present buying, parties, family get togethers and lots of eating and drinking!

As a result, we have no ‘winter season’ in our lives…

…phew, it’s no wonder we struggle with overwhelm, exhaustion and fatigue!

And in midlife in particular this can really heighten further many of the symptoms that we frequently experience: tiredness, anxiety, mood swings, insomnia and more.

Rest and renewal can be key to getting out of the cycle, so how do we do that? And what does that mean?

REST means taking a pause, the chance to refresh energy ready to go again.

We should build in time for this frequently throughout the year and self-care is a key foundation.

And self-care can mean many different things - it could mean time out for:

• a walk in nature

• an invigorating run

• curling up with a book

• a relaxing bath

• spending time with family and friends

 but it might also mean:

• setting boundaries

• saying ‘no’

• asking for help or support!

It means whatever YOU need to take a break, have some space and refill your cup.

RENEWAL, on the other hand, is about stopping. It’s more than just pausing, it’s about taking time to reflect and consider whether to continue down the current path or choose a new one, a different direction…one that can help rejuvenate with different challenges and goals to achieve.

And December is a great time of the year to do this, as we close the door on one year and open the door to a new one.

So I invite you all to PRIORITISE some YOU TIME over the festive period, some time for rest and self-care to help reset and rejuvenate.

Think about what you need to refresh that energy so you can give the world – and yourself – the BEST of you!

I will delve more into the RENEWAL process in the next article as we look to Kick Start 2022!