As kids go back to school and the weather starts to cool down, I am reminded how life is a constant ebb and flow, similar to the changing of the seasons.
I am in the second week of my honeymoon hanging out in Southwest Colorado, and my husband (wow that feels weird to write) is working remotely. So technically my days are totally free to do whatever I choose. I have filled my time with walking, swimming, reading and writing thank you notes from our wedding. But there is still this nagging feeling that I have that I need to be “more productive.”
I can’t help but ask myself, “where does this feeling comes from?”
I know deep in my knowing, that taking breaks are rejuvenating and most likely required after you finish putting out a great deal of energy on a project such as; a wedding, finishing school, completing a work project etc. Our bodies need to take breaks.
In our culture when we take prolonged breaks, we may judge ourselves and think we are losing our edge, falling behind, and/or getting lazy. There are so many messages that are ingrained in our culture about work and productivity. Taking time to rest is necessarily for your body to recover. Instead of honoring this need and feeding it, we instead berate ourselves for not driving things forward.
I know, I know… slowing down is one of the hardest things to do in American culture since much of our self-worth is linked to productivity. Self-care and staying healthy is a revolutionary act since it requires self-love and compassion and going against the grain of mainstream society.
We usually only slow down when we get sick, ill or injured. I am here to say that unless you start taking time for yourself now, you will experience major health issues in the future. Give yourself permission to not race to the finish line, but to sprint and rest, or move at a constant pace throughout your journey through life.
I just read a great article from Experience Life Magazine that speaks to this exact topic. Please read on if you are interested: Time off for Good Behavior.
Until Next Time,
