Do you ever feel guilty for taking a break? Maybe you’ve been sick, or life threw you an unexpected curveball, and now you’re beating yourself up for not being “productive enough.” You know you needed the rest, but getting back into your routine feels impossible, and the guilt just keeps piling up.
Here’s the truth, rest isn’t just okay, it’s necessary. Our bodies and minds need time to recover, heal, and reset. But there’s something nobody really talks about, the struggle of getting back into your routine after taking that much needed break.
I recently learned this lesson firsthand when food poisoning knocked me completely off my feet for several days. There I was, curled up in bed, feeling awful not just physically, but mentally too. The voice in my head kept whispering “you should be doing something productive” even though I was exhausted and just wanted to sleep.
But here’s what I discovered, forcing yourself to power through when your body needs rest isn’t productivity. It’s self-sabotage. Those days of rest weren’t a setback, they were exactly what I needed to heal.
The tricky part wasn’t the resting itself. It was getting back into my routine afterward. When I finally felt better physically, my mind was still in “rest mode.” The thought of jumping back into my usual productive routine felt overwhelming, almost impossible, and I wanted to just brush it off as a “do later”.
But I made a choice. I would show up. Not at 100%, not perfectly, but just show up. I forced myself to go through the motions of my usual routine, even when it felt like the last thing I wanted to do. And you know what? Something magical happened. After a few days, it started feeling natural again. The resistance faded, and my productive groove came back.
Here’s what I learned. It’s perfectly okay to take breaks when you need them. Whether it’s illness, burnout, or life circumstances, sometimes rest is the most productive thing you can do. The key is to not get stuck in the rest phase. When it’s time to return, start small. Show up. Go through the motions. Give yourself grace but keep moving forward.
Your routine will feel awkward at first, like trying to write with your non-dominant hand. But if you keep showing up, day after day, the rhythm comes back. Sometimes, even stronger than before.
When was the last time you needed a break but felt guilty about taking it? How did you handle getting back into your routine afterward?
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