Rest Without Guilt: A Guide for Spiritual Creatives

Hello friends! Hope everyone has had a good start to August. After this weekend's full moon and the 8/8 portal, I felt compelled to write a blog post about rest and discuss the cultural conditioning that often leads us to prioritize overworking. Right now it feels like the only way to be seen as successful by the masses is by overdoing it at the sake of our well-being, ultimately sacrificing our mind, body, and spirit in the process. This blog will be all about shifting the mindset of rest and transforming it from something the mind sees as wasteful into a safe space for the mind, body, and spirit to become one again.

Why Rest is Energetic Work

Rest is a key part of the natural order of things. Every living being, whether it be an animal or plant, has rest as part of their cycle to thrive in any condition. Certain mammals will hibernate during the worst times of the year in order to conserve energy for their next season. Trees in the fall and winter will shed their leaves to conserve their energy during the coldest months so that way the focus can be on keeping the roots alive, to reflower in the spring and summer. The tides of the ocean can even be seen as rest periods, giving the sea's ecosystem time to allow different fish and sea critters to come in and out of their habitat for food and survival materials. It is a natural part of the world's rhythm to rest, and humans deciding to ignore that natural order brings chaos to everyday life.

Rest allows time for energetic hygiene, realigning the aura, and resetting the nervous system. Down time allows for the messages to come through and be processed thoroughly instead of being pushed aside or passed over. Humans need downtime, especially in this day in age where we are constantly fed information, consumerism, and propaganda to push the powers at be further with their agenda. If we don't stop to rest and observe the world around us, the big things get passed by, and the consequences can be detrimental to the collective. Rest makes time to make sense of the chaos we are fed and allows us to use our instinct and discernment to see if what we are subscribing to even aligns with our values, morals, and pillars of life. They want us to be busy, sick and tired because people who aren't able to operate at their best are easier to manipulate.

5 Ways to Make Rest a Ritual

As mentioned earlier, rest is already part of nature. Making your routine around rest and making it into a ritual is all about paying attention to the natural rhythm that the planet is already giving you. Here are a few ways you can make rest a part of your everyday.

Moon Phase Rest Days

I have found using the moon as a guide for rest integration to be the easiest starting place, since the moon is a visible representation for all to see. As the moon goes from new to full, the energy builds and we plan and execute said plans (waxing crescent and gibbous), when the full moon is here we celebrate the work so far and release the energy that has been built up, and then when the moon goes from full to new we are in the process of reflection, rest and preparation for the next cycle (waning crescent and gibbous). Since we see the moon almost every day, it is not hard to plan your rest periods for when the moon goes from brightest to darkest. Plan big events for the gibbous and full moon phases and plan small activities during the crescent and new moon phases. If you want to take it a step further, add the astrology sign of the moon into the mix to help you decide what activities would be most beneficial during those different phases.

Sensory Detox Hours

The world is overstimulating for a ton of different reasons, so it is even more important now to introduce more time when we are unplugged from the masses and more in tune with our own nature. Especially around the time you are waking up and falling asleep, it is a great time to make sure there isn't any extra noise and energy lingering around you to distract you from deep sleep or deep focus during the waking hours. I have found the first hour upon waking and the last hour before sleep to be the best times for sensory detox hours. No blue light, no extra noise beyond what is peaceful to you, decluttering spaces that need energy to flow through, soft fabric, sensory-enhancing things. Doing this right before bed and right upon waking allows anything lingering in your energy a space to come up, which gives you a chance to deal with it how you see fit. Slowing down the outside noise and being able to tap into your own energy and frequency makes the outside noise easier to deal with when it is unavoidable.

Crystal Companion Naps

This one shouldn't be too big of a surprise coming from a crystal healer, but another great way to incorporate rest into your routine and ritual is adding crystals to your meditation and rest routine. Crystal are always working and sending out their energy passively, so having the right mix of crystals around you when you are resting and recuperating is key to speeding up the benefits of resting. The quartz family has perfect crystals to use; amethyst, rose quartz, smoky quartz, and clear quartz are great crystals for beginners that can be found easily. All you have to do is grab the crystals that you feel drawn to, place them on your body where they feel right (if they move after you place them, leave them), and chill out for 5 minutes or however long you feel like it. The longer the crystals are in your aura, the longer they have time to align your frequency. Take a nap and enjoy the passive healing powers.

Breath- Led Stillness

Breathing exercises have always been incredibly useful for me to get back on track when my anxiety and depression are at an all-time high, and there are a ton of studies out there to confirm that breathing exercises do loads for one's mental and emotional health. Breathing in stillness quiets the mind and helps the body's nervous system calm and steady, which allows the body to get out of fight or flight and into a more sensible mindset where true power can move. It is an easy and efficient way to get centered without relying on any tools. A box breath set (4 count inhale, 4 count hold, 4 count exhale) is a wonderful beginning breath practice that is easy to remember. Imagine breathing in good things and breathing out any of the anxiety and fear that is plaguing you at the moment you are doing the exercise.

Oracle and Tarot Card Rest Prompts

Dipping into the divination side of the spectrum, using your decks to help with rest is a great way to integrate rest as ritual. Most Oracle decks nowadays are aligned with different energies (plants, planetary alignments, starseeds, animals, etc.) as well as including rituals that go along with the cards. If a certain deck speaks to you during times of rest, incorporate it into your ritual. The Moon Deck & Moonology oracle decks are a few I lean on when needing inspiration for what to focus on during times of rest. There are also certain tarot spreads you can do to help you see what is getting in the way of rest and help see what hang-ups can be dealt with to feel rested properly.

Guilt Release Practices

Now the biggest hurdle most people will face when wanting to rest is the nagging voice of guilt around resting. We could go into a deep dive about what the root causes of the guilt around rest are on a different day, but the overall message that needs to be shared around rest is that it is a mandatory part of life. Rest is not optional. Whatever higher power you subscribe to will humble you with rest if you are not mature enough to make time for it. Whether it be an illness, an injury, or unwanted downtime, rest will be forced upon us due to circumstances if we do not carve out time for rest ourselves. So how do we get over the guilt of rest? Glad you asked.

EFT Tapping for Rest Permission

Emotional Freedom Technique, also known as EFT or tapping, is a system that uses tapping gently on meridian points of the body and speaking truth-based affirmations at the same time. This technique is used to clear the subconscious of any resistance to releasing something and helps reprogram self-talk and mind loops to calm the nervous system. It is very soothing and can be used whenever one is feeling emotionally heightened. This process helps regulate cortisol and shift your mind's response to a situation. I find myself using tapping when my anxiety is high or when I need to calm my system down before I meditate. Especially if I feel like I am stuck in go mode when I know my body is overstimulated and needs reset time.

When using it to reprogram the mind around rest, we look to a script that will release the self from guilt for taking necessary time to heal and recoup after a hard/large output. The locations we want to tap are the top of the head (around the crown), middle of the forehead (third eye location), to the side of the eye/upper cheek bone, below the nose on the cupids bow of the lip, the chin, the collarbone, the armpit/side breast area, and then end back on the head. At each point, tap lightly while thinking/speaking the following phrase: "It is safe to pause. Rest makes me more powerful. Stillness is productive in its own way. Rest doesn't need to be earned, it is a necessary part of life and nature", or your own phrasing. Repeat the phrase if needed until it feels like it has sunk in and then move on to the next point until you have tapped at all points and have returned to the head. Repeat the process until you feel at peace and calm.

Affirmations via Human Design Chart

Human Design is a system that looks at the human body as energy centers and links connecting the flow of energy in and around our bodies to the collective. There are 5 energy types: Generator, Manifestor, Manifesting Generator, Projector, and Reflector, each with its own type of energy flow and aura. I stumbled into the system back in 2022, and it has changed my outlook on rest and how energy moves through the body, and how important it is to learn your energy type and move with what works best. There is about 50% of the population that is operating above their necessary energy output, and flowing more aligned with their energy can shift the narrative on how they live life and improve it immensely.

With all that being said, finding out your Human Design chart and tapping into that information could give you a whole new outlook on how you operate at an energetic level. For me personally, I am a 2/4 Emotional Projector. My energy type needs more rest and to operate within emotional waves. I use to work a 5-day a week 9 to 5 year-long job and overextended myself with a bunch of activities to seem productive. Then I would wonder why I never had energy to go out on the weekend and activities I wanted to do. I gave myself permission to shift into a different ritual when it came to rest and the importance around it, and it massively changed how I feel about life. If you are curious to know what your chart looks like and some more information about your chart, go to https://www.myhumandesign.com/get-your-chart/. I personally find Jenna Zoe's program and information to be the most beginner-friendly and helpful when learning about the system for the first time. If you have more questions, feel free to head over to my Services page and sign up for a Cosmic Blue Print session, where we can deep dive into your chart and help make a personal rest ritual based upon your chart.

Logical Rest Argument

If your mind is still in the driver's seat and you want a logical reason to incorporate rest, make it part of a to-do list in order to start and end the day. Especially for my Earth signs (Capricorn, Virgo, and Taurus), the emotional and spiritual reason behind rest will not win, and the body's demand for rest will end up being the cause of why they are forced to be still. So, for the folks who see rest as a burden, switch the mindset on it to being a ritual endpoint or starting point for an energetic output. That way it is incorporated right into your everyday, and it is just a small shift that will result in big returns.

Rest can look very different for people so have it look how you want it to look. For example, use a favorite crystal or fun souvenir as a starting and stopping point marker for the day. When the item is on your planner/desk/workspace, the space is closed for business. Moving that item away from that space means it is time to plug in and work. Use it as a personal open and close sign. You can also use a candle as a physical reminder for rest periods. Light a candle when you start a task and blow it out when it is complete, so you make a moment for rest before moving on to the next task. Use a song or playlist that aligns with the amount of work you need to do, and once that is done, you are free to do as you please and rest how you like. You can also flip all of that if rest feels hard to take at first, and take rest when the music plays, the candle is lit, and the crystal is in place. Do what feels natural to do for you. There is no wrong way to rest; it is the absence of rest that is the issue people face.

Choosing Stillness is Power

The biggest takeaway I hope you get from this post is that rest is a requirement, so make it magical. As much as we want to pretend we aren't, humans are just as much at the mercy of the natural flow of things as any other living being is. We can try to build upon a foundation of forced, endless work, but it will not last and will only bring the beginning of something new and balanced after. The natural balance of the world requires moments of rest. Humans are not above the natural balance of energy. The more we continue to force ourselves to be overly productive and tap into the outside noise, the more we drift away from what is truly the purpose of being on the planet, the self-experience. Don't get so caught up in living other people's lives and living your life for other people that you forget to take the sacred moments for yourself, which always lead to expansion and growth.

Until next time,

xoxo

Margaux <3