Reclaiming Rest: Why it is important to hit the pause button in a Hustle-Driven World

Typically, I wrote posts about my observation of what’s happening in my surroundings, so it has been super refreshing to write a (series of) blog posts about something that is both very personal and also what I observe happening in society.

I had been sharing my personal pushback on the whole grind, pull-yourself-by-your-bootstrap culture, and what happened when we so far gone in that direction.

Last week, I hinted that the remedy to this hustle and bustle is rest.

Does it sound too simplistic to you?

Or are you curious to hear a bit more about what I meant by rest and how it could also be a remedy to you?

In my line of work, I learn to ‘never assume’ others have the same understanding and experience when you say certain word like stress, depression, anxiety.

So, why don’t we unpack what’s reclaiming rest mean, and you get to decide for yourself how it lands for you.

Well, the Oxford dictionary’s definition of rest is ‘ceasing to work, /move in order to relax, refresh oneself, or recover strength.’

Reclaiming rest in a hustle driven world is about hitting the pause button and giving yourself permission to “JUST BE”

I feel that Oxford’s definition is fairly all-encompassing, and let’s unpack this some more to get a glimpse of how it looks like in practise.

First thing first, rest is not a luxury, it is our fundamental human need.

Our body actually need to have periods of rest to recharge, repair its cell, in order to restore balance and function properly.

Let’s picture a car for a moment. I first learnt about this car analogy from a webinar about self care a while back, and it stuck with me.

Would you drive a car all across Canada from coast to coast without ever letting it rest at all? Or even replenishing the fuel.

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story I bet the answer is a resounding ‘no’ because every now and then, we would need to use the rest room, re-fuel (eat 2-3times, or however many times you eat), etc.

Though what we often see is that, we may force ourselves to chug along with work, be it bailing on your friends for dinner gathering so that you can make two more calls to exceed target.

I am aware that there are times when we need to work extra, for accountants it is during tax season, and for students it is during assignment and final exam seasons.

And there’s definitely time and space to pour in extra hours for work.

It’s important to remember that when we let this overwork and lack of rest be our default, we are depleting our energy reserve, which over time will make us feel exhausted.

At work, we won’t be as sharp, and worst of all, our personal relationship would go out the window.

At this point, if you resonated with any of the points above, you might be wondering ‘How does it look like in practise’

The caveat is…

Getting a sense of the WHY you rest is just as important as Knowing WHAT to do to rest

The grind culture is very good at promoting this idea of ‘do this thing, buy that item, go to that destination’.

The culture makes you think that you need to do this and that side hustle to have certain amount of zero’s in your bank account. It makes you think that rest, vacation is a luxury for those who have the resources to access those ‘extraordinary’ experience or purchase custom-made items.

The culture is very good at making you think that you need all of those things, so that you come back ‘rejuvenated’ and ready to hustle some more, and grind your body into exhaustion.

And then, repeat the cycle all over again.

I first came into that realization a few years ago, that our culture is very good at manipulating us into thinking that the remedy to our dissatisfaction is having more.

It was very liberating, and certainly a process.

Nothing is instant. Though again, our world nowadays is very good at making you think that everything could be handed out to you within minutes.

That last sentence inspired me to write a post contrasting the culture of everything instant vs. growth and life is a series of process.

Hello, I’m Nita Agustin

Registered Clinical Counsellor based in Burnaby, BC

My jam is working with queer youth and young adults, especially those who do not want to be defined by what society told them about themselves. I help clients figure out who they are, who they want to be, and how to get there. We do this by processing how their past impacted the way they live out their life today. From our work together, I noticed clients develop better self-awareness and experience improved quality of life as they can show up differently in their relationships.

I offer virtual and in-person sessions near Brentwood, North Burnaby. I am licensed to practise in BC, as well as all across Canada, so I support clients all over BC, all the way from Vancouver to Kitimat. Other than working with clients who reside in BC, I also can support clients who reside in Yukon Territories, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Newfoundland.

Check out my About me page to learn more about what I do and have to offer for you. Also, explore my Services page to see how I can guide you in making shifts in your life today. If you feel ready to discover ways to live life on your own terms, I welcome you to book an initial intake session. I am so stoked to meet you and start figuring out how you can show up as your best self!

Throughout this pandemic, I witnessed telehealth virtual sessions become more of a norm, and it has been super transformative seeing clients can access mental health services from the comfort of their home.

There are lots of different stereotypes out there, and society tells us who we are supposed to be and what we are supposed to do in the world. It can feel very overwhelming and confusing to compare our personal experience against those ideas. The thing is, you no longer have to be defined by what society tells you. It is your life to live, and you get to decide who get a say about your life.