You need rest for your mental, physical, and emotional health. And it takes more than just getting good sleep. Here’s how to redefine and discover what rest actually means for you.

When was the last time you felt rested? Like really, deep-in-your-bones, deep-in-your-mind rested?

Rest may seem like a simple thing, but many of us have forgotten what it’s like to actually, deeply rest — both physically and mentally. We live in a world that prizes productivity and often labels rest as “laziness,” a world that monetizes our attention and profits from our constant activity.

We might joke about how burned out we feel with memes on social media, but rest is a foundational need, like oxygen and water. If we don’t get enough of the right kind of rest, our physical and mental health takes a big hit — sometimes causing burnout, which can lead to serious health issues.

Restorative practices, then, are not just the occasional “self-care,” spa day, though that can be part of it.

It’s first important to realize that rest doesn’t only mean sleep. According to the American Psychological Association (APA), there are seven types of rest.

Physical

This is the rest we’re all most familiar with. Getting enough sleep at night, taking a nap, and resting sore muscles after a workout are all essential for recharging your physical energy. It can also look like stretching, getting a massage, practicing tai chi, or taking a gentle walk.

Improving the quality of your physical rest involves good sleep hygiene and consulting a health professional if you experience any sleep disturbances that can’t be resolved with sleep hygiene alone.

Mental

According to the 2024 National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Workplace Mental Health Poll, which surveyed more than 2,000 adults, 52% of employees reported feeling burned out in the past year due to their job. Plus, there are a million things outside of work that can contribute to mental exhaustion!

Taking a much-needed break for your brain before you feel completely drained is key.

A few things you can do include taking frequent mini breaks throughout your workday, connecting with friends who don’t drain your energy, limiting your time on social media and news, and practicing meditation and deep breathing.

Emotional

If you often avoid emotions or “file feelings for later,” then you may not be authentically processing and expressing your feelings, which is an important part of emotional rest.

Processing emotion with a therapist is a great way to emotionally rest, as is journaling, speaking with a trusted friend, and spending time in places where you can be your truest self.

Setting boundaries with people, places, and conversations that drain your emotional energy is also a good step to take.

Social

Similar to emotional rest, social rest focuses on time away from other people — especially those who drain your energy. Some people need this more than others, but it’s not just introverts.

Committing to fewer social events, socializing for shorter periods, and choosing social situations that feel supportive and enriching rather than taxing are all good ways to find balance in your social energy.

Social rest is about time away from people in person and people on social media.

Sensory

Tech breaks are fantastic for sensory rest. Sensory overload is common with the constant focus on screens, but it can also occur from things such as loud background noise, simultaneous conversations nearby, strong smells from food or air fresheners, bright lights, or crowded supermarkets.

Things like noise-cancelling headphones, a quiet space to close your eyes for 5 minutes or more, and getting fresh air can all help. If you know you’re going to be in a place that will overload your senses, plan out scheduled breaks for some sensory rest.

Creative

If you do anything creative for a living, you know how important it is to replenish those creative reserves.

Refilling your creative well might look like taking a pause from your usual creative demands and then doing things that inspire you or that you don’t typically do. Maybe that’s touring a museum, visiting botanical gardens, or learning to knit for fun with zero pressure to “get it right.”

Spiritual

Regardless of whether you have a routine religious or spiritual practice, doing things that invoke a sense of awe can feel spiritually replenishing.

Maybe that’s watching the waves at the beach, taking in a sunset or sunrise, spending time in prayer or gratitude meditation, or listening to music that makes you feel connected to the bigger picture. Contemplative practices like these have been shown to reduce stress and allow deep rest.

  • Check in with yourself often: How am I doing? What do I need? Maybe you’re pretty good at getting physical rest, but need to improve how you rest socially or creatively?
  • Try not to think about your to-do list while doing something restful. Rest is part of that list, so you’re right where you need to be.
  • Let go of any guilt associated with resting and allow yourself to recharge in the way that works best for you. If you tried to rest but couldn’t, that’s OK. You practiced it and can try again next time.
  • Don’t wait until you’re completely drained. Rest way before that. Schedule it if you need to.
  • Don’t scroll at night. The news has no business being in your bed with you.

Many activities are going to to be useful for more than one type of rest. The important thing is to note which things work well for you.

When you experience deep rest, take note. What are you doing, and what kinds of rest are you feeling? Jot down that thing, and eventually you will have a go-to menu of how to feel rested for each of the seven types of rest.

Here are some ideas:

Resting seems like it should be simple, but humans are complicated beings in an ever-complex world.

Learning the different kinds of rest, paying attention to what feels most restorative to you, and actually making time for those things can help you get the rest you’ve been craving.

Working with a therapist can also help you determine which kinds of rest you might need more of and how to do so.

30 Days of Winter Wellness

Day 28

Here are some easy ways to start building rest into your daily life.

  • Learn the 7 types of rest: Note which types you feel lacking and focus on filling those gaps.
  • Create your rest menu: Start a list of things that make you feel truly rested and refer back to it as often as you need to.
  • Check in: Ask yourself each day how you are actually feeling and what you need.
  • Release the resistance: If you feel any resistance to resting because you’ve been conditioned to feel lazy when you rest, remember: rest is productive.

Catch up on Day 27 of the challenge to learn about ultimate comfort foods.