Lack of rest and renewal is a one way ticket to burnout

At first rest seems straightforward, as it is often defined by the absence of work, lying down or doing nothing at all. However contemporary thinking and research view rest as more complex, subjective and can involve being active, creative, and involves some skill which is crucial to our wellbeing.

In terms of it being a superpower there are two parts, recovery and discovery, we restore our reserves thereby becoming more resilient to stress. However we can also tap into our deeper resources where we make connections and insights through processing our experiences. The irony is that the brain never rests, neuroscience highlights at times it shifts and other regions become more active. The brain is thought to be doing a number of essential housekeeping jobs e.g. removing toxins, metabolic activities but also processing experiences and solving problems. Rest is not the opposite of work, but its uncelebrated partner.

To keep things simple, I will refer to rest as a state of being that restores our energy reserves. These reserves are physical, emotional and psychological and spiritual (our sense of purpose, meaning and high value). Rest is a basic need to replace these resources that we use in our jobs, relationships and navigating the daily hassles of life. Whether doing deep focused work, caring for others or running a start up, we reach a point when we feel depleted and need to stop and recover our reserves.

Physical rest is easy to understand but how do you emotionally recover? Imagine a day of information juggling, commuting, and giving of yourself, and then arriving home with energy for your family. People in teaching and caring professions often talk about feeling emotionally drained. The educator Parker J Palmer encourages us to connect with nature, silence, beauty and the arts as good places to start for sustainable work.

We also need to unplug and take psychological breaks. Our prefrontal cortex which is responsible for higher level thinking, judgement and focus, also has its limits, like an inbox or room that becomes cluttered, we then require a break to return to high performance. Mental and emotional recovery for the modern worker is as important as physical recovery for an athlete.

Our relationship with rest has been shaped from a young age, by our social and political environment. We have grown up in a neo liberal system where the mantra is productivity and its values are consumption, busyness and materialism. The over value of productivity is in direct conflict with our need for rest, which is governed by our physiology and not the clock or profit. The Circadian and Ultradian rhythm highlight our need to approach stress and activity like a series of sprints, where we work and recover throughout and not just at the end of a day. Tony Schwartz and the Energy project lead the way in trying to challenge and educate organisations in understanding the role of energy in sustaining high productivity and engagement not just in the workplace but in life.

For survival reasons, we can override our need for rest and keep going if under threat. However we are not designed to live like this long term. This keeps our sympathetic nervous system on, which is responsible for sleep disturbance, feelings of tension and feeds into our underlying feelings of anxiety. Lack of rest and renewal is a one way ticket to burnout.

Some of our parents and grandparents would have grown up in a time where taking me time was deemed selfish or a luxury and they may have been shamed for doing so. It’s no wonder we struggle to appreciate the benefits and wonders of rest and give ourselves permission to do so. For many of us this is an inner obstacle, taking much needed rest without the guilt trip or need for approval.

Sociologist, Sabine Sonnetag views rest as a skill, to be able to relax under pressure or during busy times. This takes practise as it requires the ability to switch and focus our attention so we can mentally escape from work and home pressures. This requires active engagement and not passive consumption or continual entertainment.

The biggest online survey of people’s perceptions of rest was completed by the University of Durham involving 18,000 participates across 143 countries highlighted activities such as reading, being in nature and being alone as our preferred go to options and a sign that we may opt to be alone to fully rest and restore our energies.

For those with little time, start by recognising the in between spaces every day to boost as opportunities for renewal e.g. transitioning between one activity and another, commuting or any time they are waiting, and using these like mini pit stops to re- focus their attention to ground, calm and soothe.

Scientists like Albert Einstein and Charles Darwin championed the benefits of allowing space and time for the mind to wander to boost our creativity. For this to happen we do need to create the right conditions e.g. low demand and stimulation. This is often called the incubation phase, like our very own winter, we stop, slow down but there is a lot going on under the surface, our minds remain active, which can then lead to the illumination phase where we make discoveries.

The bottom-line is to live a sustainable life or stay as a high performer we need to get better at rest. This capacity lies within us all as a natural resource which will always be there for when ready to begin the journey, and reclaim rest as our missing super power.

Peter Connolly Senior Occupational Therapist, Mindfulness trainer and founder of Lifestyle Awareness. Lifestyle Awareness runs events and individual training that focus on sustainable living and staying well to avoid burn out. Our next event is Back to Basics Saturday 9th September, 11am-5pm, Dublin 8, which is a fun twist on the retreat experience.

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