Sometimes the most important way to listen to yourself...
Is to simply stop.
Not because you’ve done enough.
Or because you’ve earned it.
But because it's important to rest between periods of activity.
Especially intense periods.
We forget that, don’t we?
Or we aren't even told it.
It's much more common to think we must push ourselves to get through the list, to keep up, to make sure everyone else is okay...
The other day I took myself off to the beach because I knew I needed a moment to pause.
But even on the beach I found it so hard to settle my body and mind.
And in a startling moment of clarity, I realised I was sort of 'performing rest'.
For myself!
I wasn't just letting myself BE.
It made me feel a bit sad...
That even “rest” can become another thing to do well.
But it's not a performance to rest.
It's a very powerful gift for your body and your being when they quietly whisper, please… stop pushing so hard.
So try it.
Pause for a moment.
Right now.
Just stop.
Take a breath.
Notice what’s happening inside you right now.
The tightness in your chest.
The slight forward lean in your body, as though you have to reach something.
What if you stop pushing and trying?
What if, just for now, you let yourself arrive - be exactly where you are?
How does it feel?
This kind of listening isn’t lazy.
It’s sacred.
It’s how you begin to trust yourself again.
This is true for every part of your life - even with food.
For example, when you push yourself to “eat right,” to “be good,” you stop hearing what your body actually needs.
But when you pause, breathe and ask, “If I loved myself, what would I eat right now?” something tender shifts.
Something powerful begins to happen within your body and heart.
On the 31st October - 4th November I'm offering a gentle 5-day journey on Food and Self-Love.
It's 5 days of learning to eat with kindness - to pause and listen - instead of all that other stuff we do.
Find out more about it and how to sign up for it HERE
(PS. If you're a member of The Portal of Permission, this journey is free for you. Your access voucher is inside The Portal.)
If you loved yourself, how would you choose to listen now?
