Stopping and resting - who has the time??
Sep 24, 2021
Stopping and resting. When was the last time you did either?
By "stopping and resting" I don't mean laying down and taking a nap (although that sounds lovely right about now). I mean to literally stop moving. Stop planning. Stop thinking. Stop DOING.
To just BE.
Life moves pretty fast, and if we don't stop and look around once in a while, well, we could miss it.
Yeah, I know. We're all under pressure every day to keep up. Keep up with what? The Joneses?
Spoiler alert: The Joneses only exist in your head.
Our culture puts a ton of pressure on us to keep up with our imaginary friends (or not-so-imaginary ones), but we also put incredible amounts of pressure on ourselves to go-go-go and do-do-do. We "should" take care of others in our lives. We "need" to finish our honey-do lists. We "have" to figure out our illnesses so we can get back to our lives of doing.
It's like we're waiting for someone to give us permission to stop... and rest.
Stopping and resting.
Life can be overwhelming, and when we are sick, this feeling of being overwhelmed compounds. Being in pain, having gut issues, fatigue, or brain fog does NOT help matters. Who's with me on this one?
But: what if it was ok to stop doing?
I invite you to do just that. Slow down. Have some water. Stretch. Ok sure, lay down - enjoy some restorative yoga nidra. Breathe. Rest. Just be for a while.
These have been difficult times for many of us.
Yeah, it's easy to say "stop it" when looking in from the outside. But who the heck has time for stopping and resting with all that needs to be done?! There are mouths to feed and bills to pay and work to do!
Having a chronic illness can be overwhelming in and of itself. We may also be caring for sick or elderly family members in addition to our own sick and fatigued selves.
Maybe we're moving or getting married or getting divorced or having a baby. Maybe we're starting a new diet or fitness routine or we've started a new job.
And, oh yeah, on top of all that, there's a pandemic that's throwing a monkey wrench into everything.
How to combat this feeling of overwhelm?
Simple: Don't think about the future. Just do one thing at a time.
Yep, I'm back to do-ing. Stay with me here!
If we are able to stay focused on one thing at a time we have the potential to move into a state of be-ing while we are do-ing.
This poem by Elana Mikhalkova from her book "The Room of Ancient Keys" states this concept more eloquently than I ever could:
Living in the present and just being with one thing at a time is a miraculous bit of advice.
Then the do-ing somehow becomes the be-ing. We get to stop. To rest a little. To praise ourselves.
To just... be.
Sandy Swanson is a National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC), a Professional Certified Coach with the International Coach Federation (PCC), and an ADAPT Certified Functional Health Coach (A-CFHC). Click the button below to learn more about the services she offers.
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