And today I honestly wasn’t going to post a blog. I wrote it anyway because I know someone else out there is having a day like this and needs a hug and for someone to tell them it is okay to feel whatever you feel today.
I know everybody has that day or those days that you wake up and don’t want to move. No one hurt your feelings. Your body feels great. Your refrigerator is full of food. Your bank account isn’t overdrawn. You’re blessed. But you still wake up and don’t want to interact with the world today. You don’t want to be productive today. You want to crumble your to do lists and just play trash-ketball all day, eat snacks and watch Disney + or Netflix. I have trouble allowing myself these days. No one will ever be harder on me than myself and the dictator in my head.
Not sure if you guys saw the video of Will Smith a couple of days ago that went viral, but it hit me hard. He said…
“You can’t achieve your way out of childhood trauma.”
WHOAA. I feel attacked. But it makes so much sense. I have been finding my identity in my achievements, my productive days, me crossing off my to do lists that I forget to just be proud of me being me. My over achiever personality definitely stems from my trauma and I am so excited I am finally growing out of it and allowing my inner child to take a break.
Do you know the difference between procrastination and being still or RESTING?
Well if you do, you’re pretty damn intelligent because it has taken me a long time to figure it out. I usually think that me putting off my to do list to just bum around is me procrastinating. So when I do decide to couch potato it up, I beat myself up for it 5 days after. Then, I beat myself up for beating myself up and not having self compassion. I beat myself up today and my girl checked me and reminded me how hard I do work and how much I do on the daily. I have the desire to be productive but I am lacking the energy and motivation today. That is the difference for me. It is not that I just want to push everything off because of fear, laziness or lack of discipline. It is because my whole being is crying out for a staycation.
Look.. I am definitely not encouraging you to procrastinate for the rest of 2020. Just trying to encourage people that are always on the move, like me, to…..slowww down!
So today I will tell myself and the world,
IT IS OKAY TO TAKE A DAY OR TWO OR TWELVE DAYS OFF!
Some people say they can’t afford taking a day off financially. Well you can’t afford your body shutting down or your mental health being compromised either.
We live in a nonstop, busy ass society. Everybody has so much to accomplish and finish before it’s time to go to bed. Some people don’t even sleep, they think the hustle or grind is more important than resting your body and mind. Oops. Guilty as charged. But listen…
The quality of your rest determines the quality of your productivity and efficiency. Just because you are busy, does not mean you have been productive.
So my message to all of you today is to not feel bad or ashamed for taking the days you need to press restart and feel refreshed. No one can tell you what your body needs. We depend on doctors, nutritionists, and all these workout plans to tell us what our body needs, but if we just sat still we could figure it out for ourselves.
WE NEED REST!
Today, I will not apologize for not moving off of my couch. I will not apologize for not answering the phone. I will not apologize for only taking care of my dog and myself today and nobody else. I will not lay in bed tonight and think of all the productive things I could’ve done today. I am not a lazy person, but I deserve a lazy day. We all do.
Be still.
Enjoy your own company.
Give yourself a chance to breathe without the stresses and demands of everyday life.
