In Community #20: Rest and rise

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“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation...” - Audre Lorde

Last week, I wrote about the mental load we all carry and how women especially take on more. It can be tough to find the energy we need day in, day out. So how do we get back that energy? Rest.

Sure, we all know that. But there are 7 distinct types of rest that you should be considering, according to Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith.

👉🏽 PHYSICAL: Probably the most obvious one, it includes sleep but can be active with activities like yoga that give you a release of energy.

👉🏽 MENTAL: Scheduling breaks (that’s right, put them on the calendar), creating a place to keep short notes to yourself for later, and disconnecting from noise can provide a mental release.

👉🏽 SENSORY: Some of us struggle with this one – removing yourself from brightly lit areas or consistently reducing screen time on our screens is intentional sensory deprivation to ease overstimulation.

👉🏽 EMOTIONAL: How often do we get asked “How are you?” and give the answer we’re really thinking? Making space for yourself, so you can set boundaries and manage your commitments to yourself and others helps.

👉🏽 CREATIVE: Problem-solver by nature? Get yourself outside in nature – it helps refresh your creative energy. Surround yourself with others who boost your own creative energy – who motivates your own idea generation?

👉🏽 SOCIAL: Speaking of being surrounded by others, how are your relationships energizing you socially? Are you getting positive vibes and energy from those around you day in, day out?

👉🏽 SPIRITUAL: Are you feeling connected to a purpose and focus on where you want to invest your energy to get energy back? How are you supporting your community or those who are working to uplift you and others like you?

Read on to this week’s Need to Know, where you’ll find a couple of options to recharge your creative and social energy, along with more on what you were probably talking about at that Oscars party last weekend.

Need To Know

💥 Artist and creative director ICECOLD’s exhibit opens in Brooklyn. Displaying nail art’s roots in Black and Asian culture.

💥 Dev Patel’s Monkey Man premieres at SXSW. His commentary on caste gets a big reaction.

💥 It’s nearly a decade after #OscarsSoWhite. So what?

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