Forced to rest

But I can’t stop… my body falls apart

(Not me) Photo by Vladislav Muslakov on Unsplash

Years ago, a wellness expert said to me, ‘If you don’t make time for your wellness, you will be forced to make time for your illness.’

‘That’s cheery,’ I thought. Really positive and upbeat—just what I needed when I was trying to juggle life, work, and all the things.

‘You’re welcome,’ he said, even though I’d not said thanks.

Based on meeting me at a work event for a few seconds, he’d decided (he’d decided!) that I was doing too much, that I would burn out, and it would inevitably cost me my health. As a wellbeing professional, he felt it was his duty to warn me so that I could slow down my pace and take good care of myself.

I’m sure he was being kind and had my best interests at heart, but all I could think was, ‘You don’t have a clue about my life and my energy levels. What might look like too much to you is most definitely not too much for me.’

People are forever telling me I should have a rest. A rest! They look at me and see a busy person, struggling to juggle a writing career, a full-time job, a menagerie of geriatric pets, sport and exercise, and a family, and they think I am frazzled. And yes, they’re probably right. Haha! I have always done a lot and love living my life at full throttle. The slow lane was never an option. If I’m doing something, then I’m doing it. But I also really look after myself, focusing on good nutrition (which obviously includes plenty of treats too), and making time for self-care and active rest and recovery.

For me, rest is not about sitting in front of the TV for hours on end; it’s about filling the creative well and doing the things that give me energy. This involves running, walking, spinning, Pilates, travelling, going to book events and museums, and generally being more active. So, I understand people like the wellness expert might look at me and think that I should hit the brakes, but I know what works for me and I know what a good balance should be. As well as all the active rest, I also have plenty of relaxing treatments, including regular reiki, sports massage, facials and, when I remember, some meditation. And let’s not forget reading time. I have to read and write.

The problems start when I don’t have the balance and, so far this year, I have had no balance at all. It’s been all work, work, work and dealing with grief, funerals and death admin. There’s been little time to do the things that help my energy and bring me joy. So, it’s no surprise that both the husband and I have been ill this week. He’s had norovirus, and I have a heavy cold. I’ve told him that if I catch norovirus, I will divorce him. Bless him, he’s been washing his hands every two seconds, disinfecting everything and staying out of my way.

Both of us have had no choice but to stop and completely rest. The wellbeing expert’s words came back to me. ‘If you don’t make time for your wellness, you will be forced to make time for your illness.’ This is exactly what’s happened. Apart from working the day job, I’ve not done much else. No exercise. No book club. And only one 5am writing club. I was even considering taking a week off my Substack, but fuelled by a Nurofen and two cups of Yorkshire Decaf, I’ve written this under the duvet this morning.

With no evening exercise or writing sessions, I’ve found myself in front of the TV watching the Winter Olympics. It’s been brilliant. Just sitting and doing nothing has been rather wonderful. ‘I should do this more often,’ I thought, but at the same time, couldn’t help thinking about taking up skeleton, figure skating, or curling. I even picked up a sweeping brush and started curling around the kitchen.

‘Are you sweeping or just dicking about?’ the husband asked.

‘Just dicking about,’ I said. ‘I’m too ill to sweep.’

I love sport and exercise, and without doing them, my body falls apart. When I’m inactive, I get injured, which sounds ridiculous, but is so true. Yesterday, when I started walking upstairs, my left knee gave way. There was a terrifying moment when I thought it wouldn’t take my weight and that I would fall, and have to buy a stairlift, or sell the house and move into a bungalow.

For someone who is only just about to start a career in skeleton, I can’t be dealing with dodgy knees. So, I’m in the strange situation of needing to rest to get over my cold but also needing to move for the sake of my bones. Today, I am going to do both. I’m thinking of a gentle walk this afternoon in between watching the Winter Olympics. After that, I’m hoping I recover. I don’t like to slow down, never mind stop, but it’s been a reminder that I need to get the balance right again. As much as I hate to admit it, the wellness guy has a point.

About me: I’m Liz Champion, writing this from under the duvet, while dreaming of my new career in winter sports.