Throughout the week, you toil away, meet office deadlines, complete household duties, and squeeze in some socializing when you can. By the middle of the week, you are utterly exhausted, and when Friday finally arrives, you are fully resolved to make up for all of the rest you lost out on during the week. You sleep well, if not excessively rested well, binge-watch movies and shows, and spend the majority of the day as a couch potato, but on Sunday evening, you are equally, if not more, nervous. On Monday morning, instead of feeling revitalized and refreshed, you are just as exhausted before the week begins. Most people know that seven type of rest is essential.
The question is: Are you taking the right kind of rest? This information will briefly tell you some of the seven types of rest that a person should follow and which one you might be lacking. Resting is as essential as working. The right kind of relaxation for your body and mind can be even more rejuvenating.
Sleeping throughout the day, for example, will make you exhausted by the evening. However, if you take a quick 15-minute walk or jog before work, your body will have time to replenish its energy levels. Similarly, when it’s time to sleep at night, you’ll realize that not only do you sleep better, but you’ll probably sleep longer as well. On the other hand, there are many instances when we all respond to our bodies need for rest with the wrong type of activities, which do not assist our bodies to relax or remove any tension.
Seven Types of rest that are needed:-
Mental rest
When your brain does not get enough rest, you may experience brain fog, listlessness, and exhaustion. Just like your body’s muscles need to relax into a reclining position before they can get maximum effectiveness, your brain needs to turn down all ideas and switch to “off mode” to replenish and refresh itself.
When we don’t give our brains a break, we stress both physiology and psychology. That means we make it more difficult for our brains to keep up with what has to be done, and worse, we interfere with how we feel about ourselves – psychologically exhausted — which makes us physically tired. We can disconnect from the workday by doing something fun for 5–10 minutes.
Physical rest
The first form of rest your body needs, according to Dr. Dalton-Smith, is physical rest. Of course, you can obtain this via sleeping, which is critical.
However, you can also rest physically in the same way your body does when it sleeps. You can accomplish it by relaxing your body into a reclining position. Your muscles will relax and let go of any contracted state they are in, allowing them to replenish with blood and oxygen. According to Dr. Dalton-Smith, physical rest is not the same as ceasing all activities and simply relaxing. Furthermore, physical relaxation allows the digestive system to catch up on its function of processing food and eliminating toxins accumulated during the day while you are active.
Even if you shift around now and then, sitting or standing all day is not the same as lying down. Your muscles relax, and your energy stores recharge when you lie down.
Sensory rest
Our bodies go into full healing mode; thus, it is usually taken care of. However, if you cannot get enough sleep at night or throughout the day for whatever reason, you should incorporate it into other times of the day. Unplug your electronics, turn off the TV, and silence your cell phone and other distractions, such as giving yourself a vacation from them. It will offer your senses a much-needed respite while also allowing your brain to reacquaint itself with itself.
Creative rest
Creative rest allows your mind to relax by taking a break from your duties and being free of any ideas or “noise.” When you keep your brain busy with problem-solving, it doesn’t have time to do what it does best: think outside the box and develop fresh ideas.
Dr. Dalton-Smith says in her TED Talk that you take time each day to allow your mind to wander and investigate concepts and circumstances that interest you so that your brain might come up with innovative solutions, ideas, or ways of looking at things.
When you return to the activity at hand, creative rest allows you to be more productive and creative.
Emotional rest
Anxiety, frustration, rage, contempt, and resentment are all negative emotions that can be as exhausting on the body as physical tiredness. The more we allow our feelings to govern us, the more difficult it is for our bodies and brains to function normally.
Dr. Dalton-Smith offers a cognitive defussion approach in her TED Talk that teaches you how to build a distance between your ideas and feelings so that they can’t control you. For example, it assists persons with anger issues in examining the true causes of their anger and then taking action rather than striking out at someone, leading to regret afterward.
Stepping aside from stressful situations and taking a break from your feelings is the quickest way to emotional repair.
Social rest
We all deserve a break from being around other people, but this isn’t easy to achieve in today’s hyper-connected society. Social relaxation allows you to spend time alone with yourself and appreciate peace, which is certainly something we all need more of these days. Spending time alone in silence does not imply that we are anti-social or misanthropic. It simply means that we are taking a tiny step back from reality to identify our genuine problems and address them proactively.
So, instead of spending time with demanding individuals, spend time with people who make you laugh, relax, and feel good about yourself. We all need a break from the continual chatter, noise, lighting, texting, and other distractions.
Spiritual rest
Spiritual relaxation is critical for your mental health, especially after dealing with the world’s expectations after a long day. It is about achieving peace and tranquillity in your thoughts and feelings.
“It’s about creating a space where we can quiet our minds, slow our breathing, calm our emotions, and open ourselves to something higher than what we see in front of us,” Dr. Dalton-Smith explains. “We must also delve deep within ourselves to connect spiritually.” Begin meditating, journaling, or doing anything that makes you feel entire and connects you to the essential things in life. The more we do for ourselves, the better our life will be.
Conclusion
We all require rest. When we don’t get enough of it, our bodies and brains begin to malfunction, resulting in chronic health disorders such as sleeplessness, exhaustion, depression, stress, and anxiety. As a result, we must discover ways to give our bodies and minds the rest they require. So, if you aren’t getting enough sleep at night, consider employing these seven types of rest to repair your body and mind naturally. Thank you for your time!
