Do you ever feel like your brain is on a never-ending treadmill, racing from task to task without a moment's respite? Join me, Sally Burlington, as we unlock the secrets to achieving mental serenity in a world that seldom slows down. In our latest episode, we delve into the transformative power of mental rest, underlining why it's as crucial to our cognitive vitality as sleep is to our bodies. Guided by Dr. Sandra Dalton Smith's insights on the seven types of rest, I offer up a treasure trove of actionable tips—think meditation, daydreaming, and mindfulness—that promise to rejuvenate your mind as effectively as a good night's slumber.
As we wander through the landscapes of tranquility, I draw on the poetic wisdom of Morgan Harper Nichols and Donna Ashworth to paint a picture of a more restful state of mind. Discover how simple pleasures, like the quiet moments of a solitary drive or the gentle embrace of nature, can serve as sanctuaries for your overworked thoughts. Tune in and learn how to match your rest needs with the perfect restful activity—your mind will thank you for it. So let's embark on this journey together, with each step bringing us closer to a life of balance, peace, and mental rest.
Do you ever feel like your brain is on a never-ending treadmill, racing from task to task without a moment's respite? Join me, Sally Burlington, as we unlock the secrets to achieving mental serenity in a world that seldom slows down. In our latest episode, we delve into the transformative power of mental rest, underlining why it's as crucial to our cognitive vitality as sleep is to our bodies. Guided by Dr. Sandra Dalton Smith's insights on the seven types of rest, I offer up a treasure trove of actionable tips—think meditation, daydreaming, and mindfulness—that promise to rejuvenate your mind as effectively as a good night's slumber.
As we wander through the landscapes of tranquility, I draw on the poetic wisdom of Morgan Harper Nichols and Donna Ashworth to paint a picture of a more restful state of mind. Discover how simple pleasures, like the quiet moments of a solitary drive or the gentle embrace of nature, can serve as sanctuaries for your overworked thoughts. Tune in and learn how to match your rest needs with the perfect restful activity—your mind will thank you for it. So let's embark on this journey together, with each step bringing us closer to a life of balance, peace, and mental rest.
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Speaker 1:
Welcome back to the Create Harmony podcast. You have come to a place where we work to refresh your life, to raise your well-being and refocus you on peace and joy. If those are things you need more of, you have come to the right place. I am Sally Burlington, and this is episode 63. So last week we wrapped up our Winter Well-Being Series and during that episode we talked about rest. That was part of the end of Winter Well-Being. We didn't want to miss out on talking about rest and why it is important for all of us. So if you haven't heard that episode, I'm going to recap a little bit for you. So the idea is that rest is essential. It's an essential element of life. It is not just a nice to have, but it's a have to have. It's not optional for you to rest. And we discussed last week the concept of different types of rest. There are seven different types and they are physical, mental, social, emotional, sensory, creative and spiritual. Now, I did not come up with those types. Those are attributed to Dr Sondra Dalton Smith. She is an expert in the field and she developed those seven types of rest. So if you are like me most people are they're on board with the idea of resting. We all know that we should rest and we intend to do it well. However, if you are like me, things might go like this I will recognize a period of time that I need rest and I'll try some different ways to get there, but often the type of rest I choose does not match the type of rest that I need, and this is like having a cold and taking medicine for a stomach bug it does not help the situation. So, as a conversation on ongoing conversation, over the next few weeks, we're going to try and strengthen our skills together. We're going to draw inspiration from others and we are going to learn more about how to rest effectively, of all those different seven types of rest, and in each of our conversations we're going to have some rest reflections, and these are readings that I have found collected up for you to just provide you with some inspiration, things for you to think about and ponder on and maybe feel inspired as you are learning how to rest more carefully. So for today's discussion, we're going to look more closely at mental rest.
Speaker 1:
So the definition of mental rest is stopping using your brain to work so hard and giving it time to process all the information in your life. This gives your brain a chance to think through issues more deeply. It gives you a chance to process information more effectively and submit your memories more completely. You're not rushing from one thought to the next thought to the next thought to the next thought. So some ways that you can incorporate mental rest into your life are meditation, daydreaming, breath work or any other mindfulness practice. So what this might look like in your life is that when you are driving, you maybe won't make that next phone call. You maybe won't turn on a podcast, turn on some music. Maybe you will just drive and let your brain get a little bit of mental rest. Or maybe you'll take a nature walk and you'll contemplate. You won't put your AirPods in and listen to some things. Some more information, you'll just notice things and let your brain wander. Meditation comes in all sorts of forms, so you can choose a guided meditation or simply set a timer and sit in silence. Even just three minutes can make a difference. So any activity that allows your mind to wander and wonder, your brain is going to learn how to reset itself.
Speaker 1:
In these restful times and this type of rest is gonna Listen. It's gonna feel like wasting time. I mean, I said daydreaming a few minutes ago and that usually is in our category of time wasters that we're not focused, we're not getting things done, we're not being productive, we're just sitting around gazing out the window, and that really is not something that we are typically comfortable with. But remember, you are doing something, you are rebooting your system and that's what matters. You're taking the time to let your brain rest, and that is important. So here are some rest reflections for this week to inspire you along the road and while you're listening in, I invite you to let your mind rest for just these moments we have together. So if you don't feel like you can incorporate this, you don't feel comfortable doing this in the rest of your life. Just let my voice soothe you in a to a more relaxed posture. You you can just take this time to let your mind wander and reset, even if you can't do it any time outside the podcast. But this time together can be a resting point for you. So our first rest reflection is by Morgan Harper Nichols In her book you are only just beginning, and it goes like this as you venture out into new depths, let silence be your serenade. You have become accustomed to clatter and chatter of busy people doing busy things. But I promise you, if you stay with the silence, you will recognize that your soul was made for the deep. How very lovely your soul was made for the deep.
Speaker 1:
Our next rest reflection is from Donna Ashworth in her book Wild Hope, and it is called the weary child within. And it goes like this there is a tiredness that cannot be slept away, a weariness that cannot be refreshed with rest. And when it appears, look straight to your inner child, my friends. She is the energy you see, she is the spark that lights the lamps within. And when your flames are growing dim, it is she who fires them up once more with her youthful, effervescent, boundless supply of hope. If she is weary, that little girl, if she is not showing up with her light, you need to treat her better. She wants freedom, wide open spaces to run. She wants cake, laughter and fun. She wants to play. My friends, let her play. There is a tiredness that sleep cannot fight, but laughing in the moonlight with your feet in the sea, very much can. So very beautiful the visuals of the weary child within finding rest. So our next rest reflection is also from Morgan Harper Nichols in her book All Along you Were Blooming. And it goes like this you might feel overwhelmed beneath this canopy of endless trees, but if you choose to keep going, you will soon find the clearing, an open field with room to rest before you rise and begin again. And even though restless questions crowd your midnight, wandering every breath is a step in the direction of mourning, let go to grab hold of tomorrow's possibility and try again. Try again. That one is very restorative and lovely. So now we have a rest reflection from Kate Bowler in her book the Lives we Actually have, and it is called for when you are running on fumes. And it goes like this Sometimes I am paper thinning at every touch.
Speaker 1:
Responsibilities and duties and errands are wearing me down. There is not enough time or energy, or finances or imagination. I hardly recognize myself. I can't keep going, but I can't rest. God, can you help me slow down? I just need a little shelter and a long breath. Give me space to curl up for a while. Hold me until I can feel my shoulders drop and I am freed from what can't happen right now. Let me think only about what is gentle and lovely, what is bountiful and unencumbered. On this too heavy day, let me be amazed by nature and gaze and wonder at the sky, the velvet of petals and the precision of fronds, the ridiculous owl with his stark yellow stare and tweedy feathers. God, scoop me up into life as it is, stop me from running ahead so I can be here in this space for a moment and breathe. Amen.
Speaker 1:
And now one more from Kate Buller, called for. When you just can't find any peace, god, I am troubled in spirit and there doesn't seem to be an end to it. Show me the way towards peace. Thank you for the freedom that comes when I admit how powerless I feel, how small amid the mountains of trouble. God, in this dark valley, let your light reach me, let your spirit comfort me, help me understand how my body and mind and heart can be at rest, even here. Jesus said I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace In this world. You will have trouble, but take heart. I have overcome the world, creator of heaven and earth, and these mountains, who created even me, shelter me, live in me, breathe in me here, alongside all that is too vast to comprehend. You will never leave me. It's a fact. It's your greatest promise. Amen.
Speaker 1:
And our last rest reflection for this week is back to Donna Ashworth in her book Wild Hope, and it is called Do Less. And it goes like this when you stand at the threshold of a messy room and you're rendered motionless, unable to begin, so large is the task facing you, sit down, do not view the scene as one, but focus on a single thing A shoe missing its partner, perhaps Complete the pair, return them to where they live, and then sit down, think of where you bought the shoe and how your life unfolded that day, and smile for the memory, no matter how plain. Then focus in on something else and repeat it's better to make small steps than to drown in overwhelm, and your mind is like that too. When your brain holds too much chaos, sit down, take one thought at a time, look at it, spin it with your actual inner voice and not your inner critic, and place it where it should be. When you want to achieve more, sit down, do less. What a beautiful and counter-cultural inspiration.
Speaker 1:
So this concludes our rest reflections for today, and it includes our discussion about mental rest. Hopefully you found some ways to inspire yourself and had some thoughts about where you can incorporate more mental rest into your week, you can go back to these reflections, listen to them again, ponder over them more deeply. That might be a good way to let your mind wander. That's the purpose. That's what we're using these beautiful rest reflections for. So we'll be back next week with another former rest and some more rest reflections for you. Hope you will join us again then too, and good luck on your resting, until next time, peace.