Often we are told the 3 main components of a healthy lifestyle are diet, exercise and SLEEP. Sleep is in fact essential for your body and brains to regenerate, discard waste and grow (especially for children but it also plays on our capacity to make new connections / integrate our day).

Not having enough sleep and good quality sleep exposes us to lower immunity, brain fog, higher injury risks.

Yet, it is not enough in our overstimulating high-speed worlds.

You might have heard there are 7 main types of rest (1): physical, mental, sensory, social, sensory, emotional, creative and spiritual. Let’s have a closer look at the first five in the list.

• Physical rest:  typically quality sleep or napping but also muscle squeeze and release, soft practices such as slow walking or yoga,

• Mental: our brain needs a break from information overload, decision making and problem solving,

• for instance mindfulness activities, hobbies like gardening, drawing, … to allow our brain to wander without pressure,

• Sensory: we live in a overstimulating environment, especially for kids;

• our senses will welcome breaks from screens and electronic devices, e.g. going out into the nature,

• Emotional: taking time away from emotionally drawing environment and to allow yourself to acknowledge your emotions,

• Social: for this one, it might depend on whether you are more an introvert or extravert, meaning whether meeting people tends to drain ou recharge your battery, but in any cas

• stepping away from energy drains relationships and searching for positive and supportive relationships can change your life.

Then get into the habits of scheduling your rest, e.g. outside activities, hobbies or meditation, in your calendar and to have it on repeat.

Another important thing is to learn to listen to yourself (body - mind - soul) to find out when rest is urgently needed and what types of rest and by and by, to learn to do it pro-actively. Know yourself to get the best rest!

For instance, if you fall asleep during meditation, then go to nap or sleep instead of pursuing your meditation: it is your body signalling its first need. If you nap, try not to do it for several hours, 20 minutes have shown to be great to refresh yourself (longer and you will get drained).

Take also some time to decide what are your boundaries, especially at work or with friends and relatives. Once you are clear on them, express clearly your boundaries and repeat them, so that people are able to respect them and you to enforce them.

On addition, if possible, it is great to have a support system, esp. for emotional and social rests.

How to help kids rest?

Having a consistent bedtime routine and bedtime hours is very important. Check my post on bedtime routine here.

Make sure they also have enough time to play and to go outside. Schedule regular outings outside and even better in nature if you can.

Try and respect their rest needs: if they need a sensory break or a nap, allow them to get it, even if you had something else plan, as much as possible.

Respect their their boundaries and listen to them (not only with your ears), as they consistently evolve and change.

And be a model by getting enough rest and different types of rest. Talk about it with them: e.g. « Mommy needs a little time by herself. I love you very much but my attention glass is a little empty right now and I need to fill it again ».

What are your tips on that?

A person who gets enough rest will in general be sharper, more focused, have a greater memory, be more active than reactive in their communication and collaboration and be able to see the greater picture.

There are several things a company can implement to help people get the breaks they need:

• Make sure people can get small coffee/tea/water breaks in-between meetings or tasks and enough time at lunch break,

• Offering a dim-lighted room where people can take a nap or just a sensory / social breaks once a day,

• Allowing outside walks or some sports at lunch break or late afternoons,

• Setting some work boundaries: e.g. don’t disturb signals for people that need to focus on a task, e-mail work hour limits.

Can you think of other features a corporate environment could offer?

Source

(1): book Sacred Rest, Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith