Are You Getting Enough Rest?

I heard this question and immediately thought, ”I think so.” I sleep between 7-8 hours every night. But what I realized is that rest is not the same thing as sleep. And according to board-certified internal medicine doctor, speaker and author, Saundra Dalton-Smith, we may not be getting enough “restorative rest.” Rest is the key to more energy, greater productivity, better creativity, increased happiness, and a thriving life.

How can we keep our energy, happiness, creativity, and relationships fresh and thriving in the midst of never-ending family demands, career pressures, and the stress of everyday life? In her book SACRED REST, Dr. Dalton-Smith addresses the difference between sleep and restorative rest and breaks restorative rest into 7 dimensions.

Dr. Dalton-Smith shares seven types of rest she has found lacking in the lives of those she meets in her clinical practice and research. She discusses why a deficiency in any one of these types of rest can have unfavorable effects on your health, happiness, relationships, creativity, and productivity
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According to Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith, A restorative lifestyle includes:

• Physical: The chance to use the body in restorative ways to decrease muscle tension, reduce headaches and promote higher quality sleep.
• Mental: The ability to quiet cerebral/mental chatter and focus on things that matter.
• Spiritual: The capacity to experience God in all things and recline in the knowledge of the Holy.
• Emotional: The freedom to authentically express feelings and eliminate people-pleasing behaviors.
• Social: The wisdom to recognize relationships which fill us up from ones that exhaust and how to limit exposure to toxic people.
• Sensory: The opportunity to minimize the endless onslaught of sensory input received from electronics, fragrances, and background noise.
• Creative: The experience of allowing beauty to inspire awe and liberate wonder.

She includes an online quiz that will provide feedback on a restorative lifestyle in each category.

We have made rest synonymous with laziness when in reality it’s the key to more energy, greater productivity, better creativity, increased happiness, and a thriving life. Rest can no longer remain optional.

Which category you feel is your strongest?

Which one is your weakest and needs some attention?

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