Friday, October 01, 2010

How Do You Embrace Resting?



Are you good at resting?

I'm not.  I have a terrible time falling asleep, and am a compulsive list-checker-offer 

In August I had great plans to Walk Into 41 by walking for 30 minutes every day for 41 days, starting on my birthday.

The first day went great, and then life intervened.  Lots of work and travel, plus I strained my big toe in dance class (badly). I stopped walking.

A month later, I tried again.  I made it to day 11, and then I re-injured my toe, which started bugging my knee, and the rest of my foot.

This week, the doctor told me to stay off my feet.  I tried to bargain with her by explaining, "I walk almost every day from my house to run errands. Is that OK?" 

She said, "No."  In fact, this is how she wrote out my prescription (the caps are hers):
  • Aleve
  • Ice foot for 15 minutes at a time at 3 times
  • REST
  • Supportive shoes
Sigh. 

So, this weekend I'm sticking to my bed and couch as much as possible and hunkering down with my social change book club book, Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed (which seems apt somehow).

I'd love your tips for how you've moved through times in your life when you have to stay still to move forward.  How do you embrace resting?


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5 comments:

  1. I love this concept Brit! I had to "accept" how to rest before embracing it. it's not natural for my go-personality, but has become so since moving out of the city and into a remote location. I think it started when I was 27 and I learned how to surf. I was so excited, I kept jumping in and really expecting to take to it. My instructor told me that I really needed to look at the waves from the beach and study them before jumping in. See how the waves moved and etched into the landscape, basically, understand some dynamics of surf and where things get churned up are easier to spot from afar. I guess that is still technically not "resting", more like studying! But now I allow myself a recharge, restart and am patient with myself so I can be more present of mind with whatever I am doing.

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  2. Hmmm, yeah. Not so good at that either. :)

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  3. Carol A.11:59 AM

    Find a place where you can move forward in your life even though it does not involve physical movement. Focus on that while you are mending.
    On another level,God has had something to say about rest in Psalm 46. "Be still and know that I am God."

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  4. Rest, ah yes...Not my strength, though I value it so much, I have to practice resting as a priority. When I sprained an ankle years ago, it allowed me to get over my fixation on movement as a way to feel vital, fit, energized. I had to learn to receive the gifts of stillness, asking for support, meditating, being receptive and dropping the stories of non productivity. During that time, I also found great rest and power in pilates and restorative yoga. I wonder what fun list you can make about what you can give yourself to (that has been on the backburner)that requires you to stay still, in one spot, resting while you do it. Doing nothing is also an art, and goes a long way. Though as I said, I am not so good at it. Blog about what you discover, ok? And walking into 41, there is the inner walk as well as the outer walk...maybe that is the one you are being asked to take. Love you!

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  5. Jen ~ It's a tough one, right?

    Roxy, Mom and Gabriela ~ Thank you for your beautiful, thoughtful and insightful comments. I've gained wisdom and comfort from all of them.

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