Each day, people are swept up in obligations, responsibilities, and priorities to maintain the expectation that we continue to move forward in our lives. It is the constant movement toward the next thing rather than taking time to enjoy the moment we are in, or to pause long enough to give ourselves peace.
Many of us have experienced getting into a state of non-stop working, being around people, or solving a problem. We become overwhelmed, exhausted, and burnt out. It comes up in all areas of life: the workspace, school, relationships, church groups and responsibilities, treatment, and physical health. This is not an exhaustive list, but it collects the main priorities of life that can quickly begin to feel tiring if we do not give ourselves a chance to pause.
Pause is Powerful.
The intentional quiet time we give ourselves in the space between one moment and the next is the pause I am talking about. It is crucial to give ourselves pause in our life every day to care for the pieces of our being that crave a small break. Pause is meant to fit into your life seamlessly and made a priority alongside all other obligations.
How to Create Pause
Take 5
5 minutes
5 breaths
5 affirmations
5 sentences
Taking a moment to intentionally focus on your inner being and place space between the task at hand is a great way to create a powerful pause. It is taking your mind away from the stressor at hand and putting it into something that soothes you.
Taking a 5-minute break to take a walk or get water, taking 5 deep breaths and noticing the beauty around you, telling yourself 5 affirmations to remember your value or journaling 5 relieving sentences are some ideas to get you started.
The wonderful part about this is it can take as long as a person has available and can be built upon for what meets their needs.
After a long stint of working, a hard therapy session, a difficult conversation, or a stressful moment, “Taking 5” is a great way to pause.
Reflect
When going through a season of struggle mentally, emotionally, or physically, I find myself subconsciously searching for something to help me feel some relief. This comes in all forms and figures as I try to pinpoint what is wrong and what to use to solve the problem.
However, this keeps me on a hamster wheel of “doing” rather than creating the pause I need.
When feeling tired and run down, frustrated, lost, sad, angry, or even happy and elated it is important to create pause and reflect on the world going on internally and externally regarding our lives. Pause through reflection is powerful when intentionally sitting yourself down and looking at all aspects of our experiences.
Doing this within a safe space, on your own, and without distraction allows us to find time for a much-needed break and can open doors to finding what will fill our cups again.
Check-In
One way I love to create a pause in my day is to do a wellness check-in with myself. I do this before moving into my next task, when I’m feeling off, or when I’m needing to make a decision. This helps me to get in tune with myself and know if I am in a healthy headspace or if I am needing something.
Do a check-in with your mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being using adjectives to understand how you are truly feeling.
This creates just enough space within yourself to know what you have, what you are needing, and what you can accept into your life right now.
This is a fantastic way to make decisions, analyze if you have the capacity to say “yes” to any requests, and know if you need space or connection.
The Takeaway
The power of the pause is giving yourself space and time to take a break from the bustle of every day and understand yourself more. It allows you to connect deeper with yourself and other people, maintain the desire to work hard, move forward, and live in peace and joy.
It can take minutes, it can take an hour, and sometimes it may take a full day. But creating pockets of pause in our lives brings mindfulness and intuition into our being, improving our quality of life.