Seeking Sacred Rest in the Midst of Holiday Stress
Ah, the holidays.
Families gather from near and far, to eat, drink and be merry. Good times are shared. Memories are made.
Well, at least that is half the story.
The other half is a bit more Griswold than Norman Rockwell.
At least that is the case in our house.
Grocery shopping, present wrapping, endless cooking, and cleaning – not every aspect of the holidays is bliss. Throw in some rambunctious play on the part of littles punctuated by moments of silly squabbles (and in at least one case, a trip to the ER around midnight following an air mattress trampoline incident), and you have a recipe for a holiday gathering with our clan.
While on the whole there are memory-making moments filled with joy, there are also tension-filled times.
So how do I maintain my sanity during the holiday season?
By making rest a priority.
Sacred Rest
Rest is essential for spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional health. Both a basic need and a commandment from our Heavenly Father.
herefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it.
Hebrews 4:1
Rest is sacred.
It is deeply personal.
And it deserves our respect.
Respecting Rest
I will be the first to admit that I have not always given rest its proper respect in my life. Even though I am a licensed therapist with twenty-plus years of experience teaching relaxation and stress management techniques to clients, when it comes to meeting my own needs for rest, I struggle.
Until I reached my “4’s,” I often confused rest with laziness. I come from a long line of workaholics who have worn this badge a bit too proudly. My late parents and siblings have had moments where we failed to acknowledge the nudge from God to rest.
I have grown closer to God in my forties and learned to surrender more. I see the Lord convicting me of this foolish pride rooted in fear.
Yet, laying my burdens down in trust takes practice.
As with any other habit, I would like to hone, I must practice.
I commit to resting with both attention and intention.
Honing Healthy Habits
When I want to learn something new, I choose one of three mediums: podcasts, YouTube videos, or books. Especially, books as I love to read. As of late, audiobooks are a fave.
When I was a therapist, I often used bibliotherapy to help clients make healthy changes, learn, and grow.
As part of my commitment to cultivating a healthy habit of rest in my life, I discovered a beautiful book, Sacred Rest. Written by physician, researcher, and public speaker Saundra Dalton-Smith, M.D., Sacred Rest is the culmination of both personal and professional pursuit for respite.
The lessons I have learned, and continue to learn, as I read and reread this book have created a lasting impact on my personal self-care and soul-care routine.
Resting With Attention and Intention
Amid the holiday hustle and bustle, making time for rest may sound impossible. I assure you it is not.
From downing pints of ice cream, while binge-watching a favorite show to jam-packed weekend getaways to diffusing every essential oil blend ever made, many of our rejuvenation rituals run aground. Somehow, despite our efforts, we fail to experience true respite.
According to Dr. Dalton-Smith, our futile attempts fall flat because we lack a deeper understanding of what rest truly is.
As it turns out, we need to understand rest (and ourselves) to attain it.
To create a rest routine that works for you, it may help first to determine what type of tired you are. Dr. Dalton-Smith’s book can help.
Learning About Rest
If we do not give ourselves the right kind of rest, we can never truly feel restored. So, how do we determine which type of rest we need?
We start by determining which kind of tired we are.
In her book, Sacred Rest, Dr. Dalton-Smith identifies seven types of Rest Deficits as well as Restorative Actions (i.e., steps we can take to help restore balance and replenish our energy stores).
To learn more about how I use this book as part of my mental health and wellness routine, read my blog post here.
Creating a rest routine requires effort, but the payoff is worth it. Trust me, your loved ones (and your mental health) will thank you.
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Blessings,
Kimberly
IOH Mom
This website is not a professional counseling website and nothing here should be construed as professional counseling advice. Although Kimberly Bennett, LPC is a Licensed Professional Counselor, she is not your counselor, and no counselor-client relationship is established unless she has signed an agreement with you. All information provided through this website is for informational and educational purposes only. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure statement. Thanks for visiting!
