7 Types of Rest You Never Knew You Needed for a Healthy Life

Have you ever felt like you're doing everything right? You're sleeping enough. You're eating well, but you still wake up feeling really exhausted. So that was me a few years ago, until I realized I wasn't just tired in my body. I was tired in my mind. My spirit, my emotions. Everywhere. And I realized that burnout doesn't always arrive as a breakdown. So in my case, sometimes it arise really quietly, especially if you're a high achiever and you're constantly pushing yourself.

over months and years. When you wake up one day and you think, what happened? And on that one day a few years ago, when I felt like I was just going through the motions, I had to finally admit that I was burned out. So that's what I found out about Doctor Sandra Dalton Smith’s work. she shared from her research in her book, Sacred Rest. That rest isn't just one thing, it's actually seven types of rest. And if you haven't given yourself enough rest in all seven areas in your life, you'll end up with what she calls rest deficit, and you will eventually burn out.

Even if you sleep eight hours a night. So I want to share with you what these seven types of rest looks like, and how to find out if you have rest deficit in your life right now. And the seven daily habits for me that really save me from burnout, and one for each type of rest in my life. And the first one is that I learned to let my mind wander on purpose, and this helped me to embrace more mental rest. So we live in a world that values constant thinking,

planning, producing, problem solving. Especially for those of us who have these busy professional daily lives. Right? But what we don't realize is that mental activity, it actually costs a lot more of our energy. Just like doing physical work. So if you ever find yourself, sometimes you're like, lying in bed. and you can't shut off your brain, or you might feel really forgetful, right? You might be distracted or you might even struggle to finish those simple task. That's most likely a mental rest deficit.

So these are some of the habits that help me to recover. And the first thing is that I pre-planned brain breaks. And that means every 90 minutes when I'm working I gave myself some time. to do a stretch, go do a walk, or even just make a cup of tea. I used to push through a few hours of work at a time, and it just became really unsustainable, with headaches. and losing the ability to actually do my best work. And there's a really useful breathing technique, and that is the 478. breathing technique, also called the relaxing breath.

It help me on days when I have a lot of high stress events happening. And it's actually really simple. So have those in the back of your pocket. Just simply inhale for four seconds, hold it for seven and then you exhale slowly for eight seconds. Another thing is doing cognitive offloading. And this worked really well for me. Especially when you have those racing thoughts a night. which is basically using a notepad by your bed to write down. any thoughts or dos that you had before you fall asleep. When I gave my brain the permission to take a pause every day,

I was able to stop living on reaction mode. and start living with more intention every single day. So the second habit is that I protected my social energy. like my life depended on it. And I use it to embrace more social rest in my life. So I think we underestimate how much energy we spend our relationships. Some people, they leave us feeling really seen and supported. And some people, they just leave us feeling really drained. You probably know who I'm talking about.

And Doctor Dalton Smith, she shared that letting some more social rest happen. when we're around people who revive us, who makes us feel really energized. and limit the relationships with those who demand too much. and they just give too little. So here are some of the ways I practice more social rest in my life. I like to prioritize the face to face time with people. who have positive energy about them, and they lift me up, or those who are pursuing similar goals to me in life. And usually through the communities I'm in with other creators and entrepreneurs.

And by knowing that how scrolling on social media can make me feel, especially as we're looking at highlight reels of everyone's life, right? Not just everyday reality. I like to take breaks from social media from time to time, to really reset myself. And I think social rest. for me, is about being with people who make you feel energized. rather than just. building a lot of the superficial, but not really meaningful relationships. So the third habit is that I stopped pushing my body through fatigue.

physically, and I just start to embrace physical rest beyond just my sleep. So many of us are running on literally marginal physical energy. So we're thinking that a week, a nap, or maybe a few hours in bed. that will fix all the exhaustion that we're feeling right now. But I come to realize that rest isn't just about sleep, even though is definitely a big part of it is like being intentionally. restoring your body throughout the day, every single day. And it doesn't mean that you have to put a lot of time aside for this.

So I'm a busy working mom. I just try to do what works best for my life. I love putting on a yoga nidra session where it can be done in as little. as five minutes with my headphones on, even if I'm traveling, sitting on the train, or maybe at home on the sofa before bed. It's basically like a body scanning session to help me relax more deeply. Otherwise, I like to have a family get together. So walking outside, my husband and my daughter to just reconnect. And we've been up to all day. So a night I've been really mindful.

about creating a calmer evening so I can fall asleep easily. by limiting my screen time before bed on my phone, my computer. And instead, I like to do some reading just to catch up on my long list of favorite books. And I get to share them with all of you on this channel as well. The next habit is that gave myself permission to reconnect. with the creativity around me, rather than just being obsessed with output. So this is to help me embrace more of a creative rest in my life. And the quote I love from Doctor Dalton Smith is.

you can't expect innovative ideas from an uninspired environment. And being a natural creative thinker myself, making videos. on this channel, writing, sharing my learning with the world. this type of rest is really important for me to reconnect with my curiosity. and experimenting with new ideas in my life, and also in my work. And here's what helped me to restore myself from my creative rest. And the first one is that I love watercolor,

and I've been doing it for the last several years as a hobby. And I was able to pass this love of art to my daughter, who's now doing it with me on the weekends to paint together. And then we decorate our living room with arts and photos. and colors to remind me of all these beautiful moments. I love music and instead of just passively listening to. at the gym and our school runs, my daughter and I, we take turns. putting on these songs that we like, and we just do a car karaoke to it. I sometimes I sign myself up for course or an event that I wouldn't.

usually go to or take, like pottery or learning a new sport like paddle. So simple things like that don't over. complicated, but it's these little intentional moments. that can help so much in our creative rest and our creative lives. And the fifth habit. It's embracing my real emotions and looking after my emotional well-being. And this is part of me looking after my emotional rest. So some of the most exhausted. people are the ones who never say what they're really feeling.

And Doctor Dalton Smith has shared that emotional rest is having the freedom. to be honest without the fear judgment from other people. It's basically stepping away from being a people pleaser, which is something that I realized I did in the past and telling the truth. So first to yourself and then to someone else. And this is when I decide to say no, when my body and heart says no. And then really owning that decision. So for me, journaling had so many benefits,

But especially in this case. to help me understand my emotions before they become resentment. And speaking of emotional rest, there's a very specific kind. of exhaustion that comes from always holding it together. So being the strong one, saying I'm fine when you're not. And honestly, for a long time I thought that was just how adult life worked. But really, the truth is emotional rest. It means not having to pretend. It means having that space fully to be yourself.

without having to look like you have it all together all the time. And that's why I've been thinking a lot more about my own mental health, especially in this current season of life. As someone who's constantly juggling a business, a creative work, my family. I've learned that you can look together on the outside. and still feel completely overwhelmed inside. So this part of the video is in partnership with BetterHelp. It's a platform that's making it easier to start therapy from wherever you are.

A credential therapist can help you unpack all your thoughts, give you techniques. to manage all that chaos, and really help you see your life from a new perspective. So you just fill out a questionnaire and get matched with a therapist. as soon as possible. if it's not the right fit, you can switch any time and no extra cost. So go to betterhelp.com, Lori Wang, or click the link in the description below. to get 10% off your first month of therapy. So the sixth habit is I learned to turn down the simulation.

from the world to embrace more sensory rest. Now, the modern world is really exhausting and very overstimulating. The constant scrolling notifications from apps and messages. that we need to get back to. And sometimes I get bit anxiety thinking about my list of unread WhatsApp messages. So the sensory rest. It really gives your brain a break. from all this constant input that we all have daily. And especially important to help us maintain that regulated nervous system.

To help us get through the ups and downs of life. And here's some of the ways I created a recovery system for my sensory inputs. So I have one unplugged evening a week. And actually, I got this tip from when I was working at Google, and we started this trend of having a no tech Tuesday night. where we take a break from digital devices after dinner on Tuesdays. And it was really refreshing to be able to do things like this, like board games, playing board games with families or reading. And almost everyone who did it, they reported that it had increased focus,

they had better sleep and more time to do hobbies on the commute some. Instead of having the radio or music on. I just like to sit in silence without my headphones in the commute. It's really helped me calm down from a very busy workday. I also like to use eye masks and earplugs for 20 minutes. Just have intentional zero silent input time. And as Doctor Dalton Smith says, even just closing your eyes. for a moment in the middle of a busy day is really powerful.

The last habit is I connected to something greater than myself. through embracing more spiritual rest. And this is not really about being religious. So whether you're religious or not, it's really about realignment. with who you are and what matters most to you. according to Dalton Dalton Smith, the spiritual race is about meaning. is about belonging, and purpose is about stepping away from your. to do list every day and towards what actually lights you up inside. Now I'm a big believer in that we sometime to slow down.

in order to speed up on our ambitions and our goals. And embracing more spiritual rest. Allow me to really question. is what I'm doing right now really aligned to my personal values? The kind of like I want to live and allow? This doesn't require a lot of effort to put time aside, for. I have a very short morning before rushing out of the door on school runs, and then off to finish the workday. with meetings I need for the day and things I need to do. But I five minutes while I'm getting ready.

Or maybe after waking up to think about the things I'm grateful for. and to appreciate the little moments that we sometimes so easily overlook. Like taking my daughter to run around the park, or. the things that made me feel amazing today in my work. Like an email I received from a viewer on this channel, and maybe even connecting with friends and family in a beautiful dinner later on. So during hard times and challenges, I like to remember that I'm. a work in progress rather than focusing on whether I achieve the perfect outcome.

So spiritual rest reminds me that I'm part of something bigger, and that my value was never tied to just one thing in my life. So these are the seven types of rest that help me to prevent burnout in my life. And by doing these simple habits, I didn't just feel better. I began to feel whole, like myself over again. So let me know in the comments below. Whatever rest are you most in need of right now? And if you enjoyed this video, you might also find this video helpful and helping you to manage dopamine.

and healthier habits in your daily productivity. Thank you so much for watching and remember to subscribe for more videos. like these and I'll see you in the next video.

Did you ever feel like you're doing everything right?

You're sleeping enough. You're eating well, but you still wake up really exhausted. So this was me. a few years ago until I realized I wasn't just tired. My body. I was tired in my mind. My spirit, my emotions. I was just tired all the time. And I was doing what the author, David White, calls mindful busyness. When we're actually moving through life without really being in it.

So I realized that. burnout doesn't always arrive as a breakdown, and sometimes it arrives really quickly, especially if you're a high achiever. in my case, and you're constantly pushing yourself over months and years. When you wake up one day, you think, what happened? And on that one day a few years ago, when I felt like. I was just going through the motions to finally admit that I was burnt out.

And that's what I found. Doctor Sandra Dalton Smith is work she shared from her research in her book, Sacred Rest. That rest isn't one thing. It's actually seven types of rest. And if you haven't given yourself enough rest in all seven areas, you end up. with what she calls a rest deficit, and you would eventually burn out. Even if you sleep at night.

So I want to share with you what these seven types of rest look like, how to find out if you have rest deficit in your life, and the seven daily habits that save me from burnout. And there's one for each type of rest. And before we dive in, I made a free one. page tool called the free called the Before we dive. in, I made a free one page tool called the Rest Reset Guide. You'll give you the simple recovery tips for each type of rest that we cover. If you're feeling tired all the time, this will help you figure out why.

And you can get it in. The description is completely free. And let's get to and get it in. The description is completely free. Now let's get into it.

And before we dive in, I made a free one page. tool called the Reset Guide. And before we dive in, I made a free one page. tool called the Reset.

And before we dive. in, I made a free one page tool called the Rest Reset Guide. It'll give you the simple recovery tips for every type of rest. that we cover in this video. So if you're feeling tired all the time, this will help you figure out why and what to do about it. And get it in the description below. It's completely free. Get it in the description below. I got.

So before we dive in, I made a free one page tool called the Rest Reset Guide. You give you the simple recovery tips for every type of rest. I will cover in this video. And feeling and feeling tired all the time. This will a little. So before we dive. in, I made a free one page tool called the Rest Reset Guide. You'll give you a simple recovery tips for every type of rest. that we'll cover in this video.

You can get it in the link. in the description. Give it a description. Get.

So before we dive. in, I made a free one page tool called the Rest Reset Guide. You'll give you the simple recovery tips for every type of rest I will. cover in this video. And you can get it in the link in the description.