Filling up with 7 days of rest
At the end of each quarter, I run campaign called ‘Fill your Cup’ This is a week of reflective coaching sessions, focused on replenishing.
My own experience of working in the charity sector, where those everyday moments of replenishing are hard to find taught me to think about ‘filling up’ in a new way. I found it easier and more fulfilling to dedicate a week to filling up. For those of us who work best in a ‘project’ kind of way, or hate task-switching, it feels more natural to allocate a block of intentional time.
There are 7 types of rest
This time during Fill your Cup week, alongide offering coaching I was focusing on 7 types of rest, intentionally bringing each type into the next 7 days and posting my reflections on instagram and linkedin
Physical Rest
Mental Rest
Spiritual Rest
Emotional Rest
Sensory Rest
Creative Rest
Social Rest
The experience, highs and lows
Days 1 and 2 felt clunky, like I was shoehorning rest into my diary like another to do, I was getting up earlier to fit in rest, which when you write it down seems slightly counter intuitive! I’d booked a massage and though it was lovely, I left feeling frustrated with my body and for not speaking up when my back hurt. I noticed I was attaching a lot of expectation to this week of rest.
During day 3 and 4 I noticed I was slowing down, becoming quieter and more focused. The meant I was completing other tasks in less time, giving more time up for rest. I took 2 afternoons off to spend with the children, one of these was a gorgeous sunny day and we went into Manchester. This wasn’t my choice but the kids are at that age when shopping is a thing! I was slightly nervous that my sensory and emotional rest would be scuppered by hot dog stands, street hustle and blaring ‘buy me’ displays. But I felt an odd sense of calm strolling through town, reflecting with the kids that when they were younger everything would be dictated by the routine of meals and bedtimes and managing their needs, now feels easier and we forgot about time a little bit.
On day 5 I had a wobble. Grey, rain soaked views dampened my mood and I spent the morning hiding from this challenge. I had thought it was ‘creative rest’ day and my imagination was sluggish. I realised the attachment I have to making and creating and the tension between making ‘art’ and using creativity to rest- I didn’t want to make and show something that wasn’t ‘good’. Then I realised it was actually ‘sensory rest’ day! Relief washed over me, I had permission to hunker down, be quiet and limit sensory input. The day unfolded slowly and calmly.
Day 6 I woke full of beans, despite a broken nights sleep (I spent 2hrs in the bath with endo/bladder pain, finishing my book and using my imagination to reflect on it – a great pain reliever!) The creative rest time felt possible and playful, I sorted boxes of art materials and played with some ideas. In the evening I’d booked a pottery class with my husband, I did ceramics at A Level and it felt so good to get my hands on some clay again! These eased me into day 7 ‘social rest’ which I focused on meaningful relationships, turning off the socials and settling into family time.
3 lessons and what I would do differently next time…
Reflecting on expectations, anticipations, needs and hopes is a useful way to start the week. I did this mid-week and from that point I felt more connected and committed to the experience and was able to let go a little bit. I need my own fill your cup coaching session before starting the next week of rest!
The weather, my surroundings, and other sensory inputs really affect my experiences. A messy, chaotic space ramps up my stress. It helps when I express these experiences and ask for help to change the space when its possible. You might find that colour or sound or smells or light have more of an impact on you when you are stressed, focus on ways to regulate yourself if you cant change the environment.
Creativity is my comfort zone but I hold lots of fear around this too, getting it right, validation. It may be that a type of rest feels risky to you. Bringing awareness to the risk helps to move through it.
‘Fill your Cup’ runs in April, July and October.
I’d love you to take part in the next Fill your Cup week, by trying the 7 days of rest or through a reflective coaching session. These sessions are half our usual coaching price and you receive a personalised ‘replenish plan’ following your session.
For dates and to book, so you can move forward replenished, click the button below.
