How to get over the guilt, and rest
So often I hear that people find it difficult to take time out for themselves to do something that seems "unproductive", like deep rest.
If this is how you feel, I completely understand! I used to feel guilty for taking time out to “just lie down”.
My favourite deep rest practice is Yoga Nidra and yet for a long time I struggled to feel ok about doing it. Even once I learned about the importance of the delta and theta brainwaves produced in Yoga Nidra, and even after I came to understand that Yoga Nidra is a complete a practice, encompassing all 8 limbs of Patanjali’s Yoga system, I still struggled to do it.
Why do we struggle with this?
I think it's because we really have to go against everything we’ve been taught, consciously and unconsciously, about being productive to be worthy.
But you are not worthy only when you are productive. You are worthy just as you are. Rest is your birthright.
Isn’t there something a bit dysfunctional about a world in which we don’t feel we can stop and rest for just 20 minutes? Does anything in nature run full speed endlessly without rest? Thinking ourselves to be above nature hasn’t worked out well for us so far.
Let’s put the brakes on and be counter-cultural together!
And if we still, for now, need to feel that we’re doing something “productive”, then think about the benefits of this practice not only to you but to everyone you’re connected with in your life...
With practice, you only need 20 minutes to dip into those healing theta brainwaves that restore not just your peace of mind, your adrenals, your sleep and your sanity, but also your creativity, your patience, and your empathy for others.
Yoga Nidra is the best practice I know for cultivating calm, confidence, and clarity. It helps us to respond, rather than react, to challenging situations or relationships.
I always find it’s worth taking the time to do a 20 minute Yoga Nidra because it seems to slow the day down. Yoga Nidra gives me more mental space and helps me to be really present in my life.
Even if for a while you have to “feel the guilt and do it anyway”, you’ll soon notice how good this practice is for you and everyone you love and you’ll feel less and less strange about lying down in during the day with a brain that has been conditioned to keep rushing around.
Here’s a Yoga Nidra for you from my online sanctuary, Calm & Courage (click the button below to access the recording):
The Calm of Still Water is a 22 minute Yoga Nidra I’ve designed to replenish your energy levels and leave your mind calm & clear. It includes imagery that invokes the calm of still water and plenty of quietness for deep rest.
As always I’ve been inspired by the nature around me living here on Melurkedee land, especially our special & peaceful Huon river, pictured here.
Bonnie loves a Yoga Nidra, even more than a dip in the Huon River! So much so that I usually have to edit the Labrador snores out of my Yoga Nidra recordings.
I hope you enjoy this one.
With love,
Alison
The Calm of Still Water is part of Calm & Courage, my online sanctuary of Yoga, meditation and deep rest resources. Find out more about Calm & Courage here:
