Teach Your Kids New Ways to Rest and Recharge
We all need to prioritize rest sometimes, and we need to make sure we teach our kids that it is OKAY to slow down and rest when they need it. This is especially important when your kids are past the napping stage. As parents, it is easy to tell when our kids are tired, but they may resist the nap or a rest because they don’t want to miss out, and they think they are too old to nap. It is important to provide them with different avenues to rest so they can start recognizing when they are tired themselves and even initiate the idea to rest. Performing a non-sleep deep rest is an incredible option for kids. For a non-sleep deep rest, all you have to do is lay down, get comfortable, and listen to a short video as it instructs you through calming breathing techniques. There are videos online that are 5, 10, 20, and 30 minutes long, so there are lots of options to fit into your day. Lay down beside your kiddo and do the non-sleep deep rest together. That way you can both get a little recharge!
I had a busy night at the fire hall last week, and I told my 7-year-old son that I didn’t get much sleep, and he said: “dad, why don’t you don’t some of those NSDRs today?” I told him that was a great idea, and I did just that. When he got home from school I told him I did a NSDR, and thanked him for the idea. He knows about them, he thinks about them, all because we talk to him about them and he sees me doing them. That’s all it takes with any health tip, provide them with the knowledge, show them you think it is important, and they will take care of the rest. Check out the health recipe below and do it on your own when we are feeling tired, and do it with your kids when they are tired too.
Non Sleep Deep Rest
The Many Wonders of Having a Rest, It Doesn’t Have to be a Nap
Timing: 5-20 Minutes
Level of Difficulty: Easy, just find the time and listen
Serving Size: Try to fit these in a few times a week to train your mind to calm down
Spice Level: Melt in your mouth mild
INGREDIENTS
Just yourself, listening to a video, while hanging out with your breath
REASONING AND BENEFITS
Do you suck at napping? Do you skip them entirely because you don’t see the point of a short nap when you just lay there getting frustrated trying to fall asleep? If this is you, or if you only have 5-10 minutes for a rest during your day, we are here to tell you that you don’t have to actually fall asleep. Having a quick rest can do absolute wonders for your energy, focus, and state of mind. This rest doesn’t require you to meditate, or focus your thoughts and energy on what you are doing, all you have to do is throw on a video on youtube and listen to a relaxing script. There are three types of videos we recommend that you search and try here: (1) Non Sleep Deep Rest (2) Yoga Nidra (3) Self-Hypnosis. These are amazing for your short term and long term health. In the short term, these forms of rest will reset your energy levels and focus for the remainder of the day. In the long term, the more you do these, the faster you will be able to shift your mental state from stress or focus to calmness and relaxation. Think of these videos as a work out for your brain to calm down. The more you run, the better you get at running, the more you teach your brain to calm down and relax, the better it will be at it. If you have never been able to stick to meditation, or if you have always been a bad napper, or if you never rest at all during the day, this is the recipe for you. Throw on a video, listen to what they say, calm down your body and mind, become a pro at calming your mind down.
INSTRUCTIONS
Find a time during the day when you can fit in a short rest while listening to one of these videos: Non Sleep Deep Rest, Yoga Nidra, or Self-Hypnosis. Try them all out and see which you like best.
Some helpful times to try these out: in the middle of a busy day, after a stressful event, before an important task, before you go to sleep to quiet your mind, while your kids are napping, or absolutely any time that you can fit it in.
Sit down, lay down, do whatever you have access to. Throw on a video and just relax, listen, and feel yourself calming down.
Find times that work best for you, and try fitting these in a few times per week
PRO TIP: This recipe is an absolute must in our minds. We rarely slow down in today’s world, we rarely give our mind a break, this is the easiest way to make that happen and get better at calming down.
* Non sleep deep rest was coined by Dr. Andrew Huberman. Listen to him talk about all of the benefits online. There are 10 minute and 20 minute videos, find your favourite and stick with it.
** There are a ton of different yoga nidra videos online. Try out a few different ones to find your favourite, and the length that works best for you.
*** Hypnosis?? Don’t worry, you will not be talking like a chicken. Self-hypnosis is a great tool to think about your emotions, separate from them, observe them, and teach your brain to relax.
