Often we can find it hard to unwind because of the mind clatter of unfinished chores, feeling as though you need to strike off your entire to-do list in order to ‘deserve’ a rest, unfortunately there will always be an unfinished chore and if you view rest as a luxury treat it will be difficult to reap the benefits while you are constantly stuck in a loop of guilt and distraction.

Tess, 47 – ‘I have been guilty of using rest as a treat and it ended up being a carrot that was constantly out of reach, from a family of workaholics with an ethos of working long days it was so hard to let that mindset go. I found I was going through the motions of sitting at my computer struggling to do anything and going around in circles, like countless others I was eating my dinner at the desk and at times barely able to keep my eyes open but I felt as I have to continue because this was the working day – even though I was really achieving very little.

One day I just couldn’t carry on, I was actually apprehensive to stop but I switched off the computer and just went for a walk –  in the middle of the day – it felt wild haha! To say it was transforming is an understatement, I found that after a while the mental fog had cleared and I was able to think clearly, ideas started popping in my head and I was invigorated, I realised that I actually achieved more than the hour I would have sat at my desk.

Now I am confident about taking what I call the ‘pause & reset’, if I am feeling blocked I stop and take a moment, sometimes as little as 10 minutes is refreshing or I’ll go out for a walk and the ideas and energy flow back to me’.