I’m somewhat of an introvert, allied to which I have some hearing loss in my left ear. Together, that means for me that after time in a noisy group where I am also trying to hear what people are saying (networking events are one such example), I need to get home and have both Sensory and Social Rest. I literally will sit at home with no sounds, no tv, music etc, simply quiet.
Yesterday I wrote “Practice Deep Play“, which in the list I’m about to give you can often count as Creative Rest.
The seven types of rest, then:
- Physical Rest
- Mental Rest
- Sensory Rest
- Creative Rest
- Emotional Rest
- Social Rest
- Spiritual Rest
For more on the idea of seven types of rest, read and watch Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith, with this article developed from from her TEDx talk.
I always key in on the need for rest with my clients. Lack of physical, mental and creative rest were always common, yet during the pandemic, I’ve clearly seen an increase in gaps around the deeper forms of tiredness, such as a lack of emotional and spiritual rest.
Again I also highlight Creative Rest in noting an earlier piece I wrote: “An antidote to languishing – Flow“, where I first noted that Professor Adam Grant feels we are all, to some level “languishing” in the pandemic and that one of the solutions is to find “flow”, which he describes as “that elusive state of absorption”. Oh, and for me, one of my ways to find that is to write my daily posts.
Please seek to be aware of your gaps and the types of tiredness you need to address, and particularly where you need to find time, space, flow. Remember to “drink before you are thirsty“, as “you can’t pour from an empty cup“.