This is the time of year when I traditionally ask: how's your burnout?
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My burnout is real. If I was a car, I'd be at Summernats and my tyres would be flaming and bald.
Relax. You're not alone. Feeling exhausted is a pretty universal condition right now.
You're probably about to tell me we all need more sleep. Easier said than done though, especially when facing the impending tinsel storm of Christmas.
It's not quite as simple as overwork and under-sleep. According to physician Dr Saundra Daulton-Smith, author of the book Sacred Rest, we need to replenish our drained selves in no less than seven different ways.
Seven? I'm exhausted just thinking about that.
I've read the book, and it makes sense. Daulton-Smith believes that resting, in its truest sense, is as multi-faceted as nutrition or even health itself. The seven types of rest can all be incorporated into our daily routine.
Resting ... is as multi-faceted as nutrition or even health itself.
And they are?
Daulton-Smith describes various "buckets" in life that need topping up with energy: our mind, spirit, emotions, reflexes, senses. For these, she prescribes physical, mental, social, emotional, creative, sensory and spiritual rest.
Some sound sexy, others not so much. What's social rest, for example - no more partying?
This one's actually my favourite nugget of the doc's wisdom. Social rest is about giving time to the people you feel truly comfortable with, instead of wasting it on superficial situations. Spending time with real, accepting, non-judgmental friends is restorative. Spreading yourself thin over too many commitments with too many acquaintances is draining.
I'm culling my Christmas calendar as we speak. What else does the doc recommend?
Sensory rest is another goodie. After all those lockdown months at home, and their constant soundtrack of others around us working, talking and living, or just the constant flow of news, our incoming channels are overloaded.
We can rest our over-stimulated senses by switching off life's soundtrack and grabbing some precious silence, or tuning out the chatter for birdsong, tranquil music or waves - whatever soothes you.
How about spiritual rest? Do you need to be religious?
Whatever your beliefs, I reckon there's no better time of year to nourish your soul and follow your heart.
Ooh, I'm feeling all fuzzy and festive. On the twelfth day of Christmas, I'll be resting in all seven ways.
- Amy Cooper is a journalist who embraces wellness, but has also used kale to garnish a cocktail.
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