5 Tips for Getting Enough Rest

We're about ten days or so away from the Winter Solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year here in the northern hemisphere. If you're feeling the call to go into hibernation, don't be surprised. The body has a way of adjusting and acclimating to the earth's cycles.

One of the biggest problems I've heard from clients in the last two weeks is a resistance to rest. There's so much to do...work demands, family obligations, holiday shopping, travel planning, winter parties. Plus, some are already on the bandwagon to start off 2015 with new year's resolutions ready to go!

Even I got caught up in it. I'm finishing up my last semester at the Pacific School of Religion and I'm up to my eyeballs in final papers and projects, not to mention maintaining my spiritual life coaching practice. You know what happened? I got sick with the flu. It kept me in bed for over a week and I'm still recuperating.

This is why taking time to rest is so important. If you don't make a conscious space to give yourself a chance to renew yourself, sometimes your body will move in to make the decision for you.

So here's a few tips I'd like to offer to help you build some rest time in your life:

• Create bedtime rituals that put you in a restful mood. Take a break from the tv or your smartphone about 30 minutes before you plan to sleep. Meditate. Drink some soothing tea. Drop a couple notes in your gratitude jar or write in your gratitude journal.

• Plan for regular 1-3 minute breaks for every hour of your day. It's easy to get caught up in work and let the time fly by. Pretty soon, though, you might find your body stooping over the computer or your back hurting. Gt up a do a stretch. Take a quick walk around. Sit and meditate for a full minute. Take a moment to pray.

• Do some exercise. This might seem counterintuitive to resting, but exercise allows the blood in your body to circulate and frees up energy where it might be blocked. After exercise, you'll feel more rejuvenated. Plus a little bit of physical exhaustion will help you sleep better.

• Get a massage. Massages help to relax you and to put aside any worries of the day. Plus, studies show that massages help release the hormones serotonin and dopamine that help you to feel more at ease.

• Take some time to connect with people and/or animal companions close to you. Spending time with others you care about is a great way to remember the presence of love always around you.

Pick one of these tips and work it into your schedule. Then add more as you get comfortable with them. The point here is to begin to make rest a conscious habit that you incorporate into your daily life.

If you have other tips for rest that work for you, let me know by leaving a comment below.

Here's to your journey to rest, renewal and revitalization!

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