Dressing gown days are the best. Yet, if you’re anything like me, they are few and far between. So why don’t we have more rest days?
And when I say rest days, let me assure you I don’t mean skipping the gym –that wouldn’t exactly be different to most of my days. I’m referring to those rare occasions when you simply do nothing. Hell, you may not even get out of your dressing gown.
Most of us schedule exercise, work, holidays and ‘life admin’, but when was the last time you allocated time to do absolutely nothing? Zero! Zip! Nada! I think it’s safe to assume it wasn’t recently – if ever. The thought of planning to do sweet f*ck all, sounds about as appealing as ‘organised fun.’ But when deep down we know it’s important, why don’t we?
For one, it sounds like an absolute snooze fest, am I right? Doing nothing is hard, when boredom seems SO damn, boring. Plus, it’s much easier to be distracted by our phones, which feel like they’re basically purpose built to keep us busy. In fact, I can recall a time when I was forced to be silent for just 10 minutes, eyes closed, no distractions. I hated it. Why was I so adverse to doing nothing? I suspect it is the same reason I can’t stand yoga.
There’s also a sense of guilt around doing nothing, when my to-do list is so, so long. Having a thriving and full social calendar is a status of success so it feels wrong to turn down an invitation because you’re ‘busy not being busy.’ It’s also increasingly common in modern workplaces for ‘work addicts’ to be encouraged, praised and even rewarded. So, you can be forgiven for not exactly wanting to boast about how un-busy and free you are… unless you are hoping to accidentally score yourself an extra shift that is. So instead when someone asks how we are, we all reply with an over enthusiastic “CRAZY busy, but what’s new?!!“
In completely un-breaking news, research continues to show how relaxation could just be the secret to a happy, healthy and long life. It’s certainly not brand new information but for some reason we feel like it’s the one piece of health advice we can ignore. It’s becoming more and more clear that rest days, doona days, or whatever you like to call them are necessary for your mental and physical health.
There are tangible benefits to ‘doing nothing’, too. Ever wondered why some of your best ideas come to you whilst in the shower or lying in bed at night? It’s because these are the occasions when your mind is forced to do nothing. In fact, when you ‘turn your brain off’ you allow the right side of it to work, resulting in improved creativity.
That’s enough to convince me, however difficult it may be. But as they say, practice makes perfect, and that is one thing I can assure you I have done. In fact, if you ask my boss, they may say I prioritised this practice over finishing this article…
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