By Freelance Writer and Books Author Denise Turney

Signs you need a break can be hard to spot, especially if you’re a hard charger. My hand is raised high on this one. Often, I’m on the go-go-go cycle. It’s a rare day when I sit down. Hopefully, you’re better than me in this area. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t times when you don’t feel like you need a break from social, family or work responsibilities.

In fact, whether you’re a hard charger or live a life at a more balanced pace, you might feel as if nothing has changed even as you’re starting to exhaust. Also, if you’re generally relaxed and accept experiences without a lot of resistance, you may not notice that your emotions are shifting. But that doesn’t mean that you aren’t tired and need a break.

Practice Awareness to Spot When You’re in Need of a Break

This is a reason why it’s important to practice awareness. Yet don’t just pay attention to how you’re feeling.  Pay attention to your thoughts. And be honest about emotions that you’re experiencing and thoughts, including troubling thoughts, that you’re having.

For example, if you feel anger, be honest and admit that’s the emotion you’re feeling. Avoid searching for someone to blame for why you feel the emotion “anger”. Just acknowledge that it’s the emotion you’re experiencing. Anger, like all emotions, will come and go.

Or you could feel peace, happiness, jealousy, frustration or tired and in need of a break. Emotions that you feel do not define you. No one owns an emotion. In fact, as you continue to practice awareness, you’ll see how emotions and thoughts come and go. It’s when emotions get stuck or keep returning with short intervals that you could be receiving signs that you need to take a mental break.

11 Signs You Need a Break

Here are 11 signs that you may be in need of a break, mentally and/or physically. Love yourself, engage in rest best practices (which will be covered later in this article) and be patient with yourself.

1. After sleeping 8 or more hours, you still feel tired or sleepy
2. Thoughts feel like they’re racing or coming at you way too fast
3. Appetite changes find you wanting to eat a lot or not wanting to eat at all
4. Sleep is hard to come by no matter how long you lay in bed
5. Nearly everything irritates you
6. Desire to go outdoors starts to wane
7. Exercise is the last thing you want to do even if you have a history of exercising every day
8. Emotions feel charged or stronger than normal
9. Sugars and fattening foods seem like the cure all for everything
10. Emotional outbursts are becoming a daily event for you
11. Focusing seems to take way too much energy

Rest Best Practices

Now, how to keep advancing when you’re tired and need a break. The best practice is to rest in God or to rest in the Creator and to accept that you’re always and only loved. Other rest best practices to take include:

• Raise your hands in the morning and stretch, allowing appreciation
• Speak with someone in the morning. You could do this in-person, over the telephone, via video or text.
• Perform cardio at your desk at least once a day
• Get outdoors and enjoy a walk
• Drink plenty of water
• Avoid drinking sugary and/or caffeinated beverages (or minimize the amount of sugary, caffeinated beverages that you drink)
• Practice awareness
• Rest an hour before retiring to bed
• Sleep at least 6 sound hours a night
• Reach out to family and friends – stay connected
• Do at least three things that you love every day (for me, writing novels is on that list!)
• Write down 3 good things that you do each day (you just might surprise yourself)
• Meditate 5 to 10 minutes a day
• Pick a day and focus on having fun and relaxing
• Let other people help you
• Open your windows and blinds and let loads of natural sunlight into your home
• Seek help when you know you could use support

Sure. You could ignore the signs that you’re in need of a break. But that may not improve your situation. Instead, add rest best practices to your daily patterns. Also, acknowledge how you’re feeling and thinking. And rest in God and know that you are always and only loved.