rest before you're tired

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“So, to prevent fatigue and worry, the first rule is: Rest often. Rest before you get tired.” - Dale Carnegie, How To Stop Worrying and Start Living

Rest BEFORE you get tired?  What?

Is it just me or is this concept foreign to you too?

This little gem hit me like a palm to the forehead.  Duh!  Of course resting before you get dog-on-feet-dragging tired makes total sense, but did my fuzzy brain pick up on it?  Nope.  Thank goodness I came across Katie and her blog Conquering Fear Spiritually.

Let me back up a bit.  Katie writes a lot about Chronic Fatigue Syndrome but there are golden nuggets on her blog to help everyone improve their well-being, not just CFS sufferers.  I don't think I have CFS...I really don't know...but I can tell you that I am exhausted All.The.Time.  Like fighting-to-keep-my-eyes-open-at-work exhausted.  Like so much so that sometimes my own driving scares me.   Not good I know.  People have told me that it's just because I have 2 small(ish) children.  That I work full-time.  That I don't get good sleep (my youngest suffers from night terrors almost nightly).  That I don't get enough exercise.  That our lifestyle is just too busy.  All of these are probably true but I don't know...something still seems off.

Anywho, now that I've rambled on about my struggle right now (which was not the intent of this post), let's move on shall we?

Back to resting before you're tired.  I don't think we know how to do this anymore do you?  Our lifestyle these days is to stay busy, constantly do or accomplish something....anything.  There is a sense of guilt that comes washing down if you don't.  You're lazy, or some other such nonsense.  I myself have bought into this for some time now too but slowly....slowly...I am learning how to unwind and put my health (mind, body, and soul) first.  Carnegie's words are like getting permission to rest and take care of yourself, no guilt included.

Normally if I have any "down time", I immediately seek out something that "needs done".  I really struggle with making rest a priority.  One of the ways my family has recently started to do this is to spend about 30 minutes every night, in quiet fellowship with each other.  This meant telling my boys that there would be no TV after 7:30 (the normal pre-bedtime routine).  No ipad or iphone either.  We have the house quiet, turn down the lights, and simply do something quiet and relaxing together.  Listen to oldest read a story (to also practice his reading skills - two birds with one stone!), play a card game or board game, or build with Legos.  Making sure we get this quiet time every night benefits us all.  Not to mention bringing us closer as a family by giving each other our undivided attention.  Thirty minutes, that's all it takes.  You can start with less than that if you need to.  But taking just a short time each day to stop, breathe, and be solely in the present will change your life for the better. 

I encourage you to go to Katie's blog and check out some of her posts, I know you'll find something that will help you!