Episode
Why Is Rest So Tricky? 😴
- Published
- Dec 29, 2025
- Duration seconds
- 388
- Processing state
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- https://moonshotmentor.substack.com/p/why-is-rest-so-tricky
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Summary
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit moonshotmentor.substack.com If you’re anything like me, downtime doesn’t come naturally. I get the value of stepping away from work and yet I still find myself filling open space with something productive. Over the weekend I found myself filling downtime with re-organizing the pantry. And when I say downtime, I mean the kind of pause that has nothing to do with goals, perfectionism or making things better. Years ago, after I’d started a new gig, I headed into winter break with a plan to “catch up.” My big idea was to read and evaluate more than twenty books to decide whether any might make good film or television projects. That meant more than a book a day. I convinced myself it was reasonable. Predictably, it wasn’t. I didn’t hit the goal, and the pressure I put on myself wiped out any chance at rest. I came back to work depleted and annoyed with myself for what I called “wasted time.” Over the past few years, I’ve been experimenting with real breaks. A winter break. A summer break. A solid two to four weeks of nothing to do with work. Some days I get bored. Some days I get ideas I wouldn’t have noticed if I hadn’t slowed down. It’s truly a practice, not something I’ve mastered. In fact I would say I’m a lowly apprentice. The reminder to keep practicing landed again recently. Our youngest daughter was diagnosed with a chronic medical condition, and my husband and I met with her care team. Two things came up that stopped me in my tracks. One: stress and anxiety make her symptoms worse. There’s nothing surprising about that on the surface, but the next part mattered. To release the stress and anxiety, she needs fun. She needs play. It works better than pain meds for her. And two: my stress and anxiety affect…