Rest can sound simple and feel impossible.
Some people feel guilty when they stop. Some feel anxious, exposed, restless, or flooded by everything they have been avoiding through movement.
A body shaped by pressure may become used to doing, pleasing, fixing, managing and preparing. Slowing down can feel unfamiliar.
Rest may bring contact with tiredness that has been hidden for a long time. It may also bring grief, anger, fear or a sense of emptiness.
Therapy can help explore what happens when the body is invited to pause. We can notice the beliefs, body sensations and relational patterns that make rest feel unsafe.
Rest can become a relationship with the body, built slowly and respectfully.
You may gently notice:
- What happens in my body when I pause?
- What messages did I learn about rest?
- What do I fear may happen if I slow down?
- What kind of rest feels possible today?
Written by
Eman Ellul