Seven Types of Rest

Are you getting enough rest? Which of the Seven Types of Rest might you need more of?

1. Physical Rest

Active: examples include light walking, yoga, or getting a massage

Passive: sleeping; being still

2. Mental Rest

Active: doing puzzles, games, or light mental exercise

Passive: stop thinking

3. Social Rest

Active: time with people who restore energy

Passive: alone time

4. Sensory Rest

Active: engage the senses in restorative activities (cooking, gardening, playing with a pet)

Passive: unplugging, putting down the phone, shutting off the noise

5. Emotional Rest

Active: express built up emotions

Passive: take a break from big emotions

6. Creative Rest

Active: play; create something new or different that feels fun, light, energizing (Legos, creating food, writing a poem)

Passive: cease or stop productivity

7. Spiritual Rest

Active: pray, contemplate, worship, attending church

Passive: take a break from religious practices; skip church

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As we think about rest, it’s important to understand just how much of our access to adequate rest depends on social equality and justice. Here’s a comparison that writers of the Bible often use to highlight the need for a just society in which all humans flourish:

Pharaoh’s Economy vs. Torah, God’s Economy