When Rest Feels Unnatural: Why Is It So Hard to Slow Down Nowadays?
Slowing down can feel super difficult, especially when we are so used to living in a fast-paced, hyper-speed environment. Our body is always adapting and ends-up learning to see this constant rush as "normal" and even "safe". We become familiar with the never-ending lists, the feeling of never having enough time to accomplish everything and our nervous system starts to feel secure in this dysregulated state of urgency and overwhelm.
Calmness, stillness, and a slow pace - things that are very nurturing for ourselves - suddenly feel foreign, distant and sometimes even unsafe. The body became so used to being in constant motion that it now resists this type of shift.
Without giving ourselves time to experience the other side of the spectrum—calmness—we begin to deplete our inner resources. Our energy drains, stress accumulates, and before we know it, we’re on the edge of burnout. At some point, the body begins to suffer, and at this point you might notice that your mental and emotional states have been showing signs of suffering for sometime already.
Creating space for calmness can be very challenging depending on your routine, but it's an essential step to replenish the body’s resources. When we allow ourselves to slow down, we open the door to healing.
There is no need to implement drastic changes from one day to the other. Little add-ons to your routine will slowly support your body recovering its energy.
Movement comes as one of the most important tools - moving your body and your breath! It's like tending a flame by slowly blowing air into it, allowing it to grow. Little steps...
My support for you...
The bodywork sessions - thaiyoga and abdominal massage - come in as a tool to support this process. They support blood and lymph circulation, helping to carry nourishment to your tissues and remove waste; and they also support your mental and emotional layers, which are interconnected with the physical body.
Providing yourself with time and space to relax, you immediately support your inner resources to fill up. Slowly, by caring for yourself, you find more energy available to care for others as well.
With love,
Tarsi.