Rest Doesn’t Have to Be Earned
from The Wired for Well-Being Podcast Hosted by Dr. Jeffrey Rutstein
Explore Jeffrey’s new program, “Shame Is Not Who You Are,” at drjeffreyrutstein.com/links. Do you need a good enough reason before you’ll let yourself rest? In this episode, Jeffrey and Steve get into what happens when the body asks for rest and shame decides whether we get it. Rest has to be earned, or at least excused. Being sick counts. Being wiped out after a good weekend somehow doesn’t. So we push through, or we stop and spend the whole time scolding ourselves for it. Either way, shame wins. It has been setting those rules for most of our lives, quietly enough that they feel like our own. Jeffrey makes the case that shutting down isn’t a failure of willpower. It’s how the body repairs. This episode is about what changes when we stop asking shame for permission to rest. Shame doesn’t loosen its grip just because we understand it. Jeffrey’s new program, “Shame Is Not Who You Are: A Body-Based Path to Reclaiming Yourself,” goes deep into the practices that help us meet it differently. Learn more at drjeffreyrutstein.com/links. Have a question you’d like answered on the podcast? Call (866) 357-5156 or email [email protected] — we would love to feature it in a future episode. This podcast is for informational purposes only and isn’t a substitute for professional mental or physical health care. If you’re struggling, please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider.
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What this episode covers
Most of us carry an unspoken rule that rest has to be earned, or at least justified. Drawing on his own recent weekend of deep, involuntary rest, Jeffrey explains shutdown as the nervous system’s way of repairing, and why shame follows us into rest and argues against it, no matter what we do. A conversation about the difference between giving up and surrendering, why “should” is so often shame talking, and how to start trusting what the body is asking for.
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