Jo Thornill, founder of Yoga Explorers explains the importance of learning to rest and why taking a break is perhaps the single most important thing you can do for your mental and physical health.
Taking a break from the non-stop mental and physical activity of modern life is perhaps the single most important thing you can do for your mental and physical health.
An opportunity to heal
When we step away, even for a few minutes, from the barrage of distractions that we all face daily, we give the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) an opportunity to kick in and do what it’s best at. Heal us. The ability of the PNS to repair and restore the body is beyond anything we can accomplish with medicine.
So why is it so hard to really rest?
Given the opportunity, your own body is capable, not only of seemingly basic tasks like lowering your blood pressure but also of complex regeneration of nerve and liver tissue. We can literally re-build ourselves. So why is it so hard to really rest?
A modern habit of busyness
The short answer is habit. We have developed a modern habit of busyness. To counter it we need to develop a habit of taking time to recover. This is exactly the point of a retreat not just to give you a break from the daily grind, but also to actually reset your system to a healthier habit pattern. And for those of us who can’t seem to help but fill every spare minute with screen time on our phones a digital detox retreat can be life changing.
Yoga Nidra
If you can’t find time to reset with a retreat then Yoga Nidra is a great way to start scheduling some well-earned and very rewarding rest into your life. Yoga Nidra takes the form of a guided meditation while lying down (I know, good right!) and has proven benefits and increasing PNS function as well as aiding with sleep disorders. Win-win.
This post was written by Jo Thornhill, founder at Yoga Explorers.Yoga Explorers provide truly memorable, fun holiday experiences in some of the world’s most beautiful destinations, led by brilliant teachers and dedicated staff who embody their holistic yoga ethos. Join Yoga Explorers for a digital detox retreat with Sarah Williams in a protected National Park in Southern Thailand 23rd February – 2nd March 2019. Instagram @yogaexplorers
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