Rest Isn’t Weakness — It’s Resistance
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- August 2, 2025
We’ve been taught to feel guilty for slowing down. To rest only when the work is done. To equate our worth with our output. In a world that praises the hustle and glorifies burnout, rest is often seen as weakness. But the truth is, rest is one of the most radical, life-saving acts of resistance you can choose.
It takes courage to stop. To unplug. To say, “I am not a machine. I do not exist to produce nonstop.” Especially when society rewards those who sacrifice sleep, ignore their bodies, and power through pain.
But your body was not designed to live in constant motion. It was built with natural rhythms — expansion and contraction, doing and undoing, movement and stillness. When you deny yourself rest, you deny yourself balance. You deny your biology.
I’ve seen people push themselves to the edge of illness in the name of success or service. They end up anxious, inflamed, exhausted — not because they’re weak, but because they’ve been conditioned to ignore the signals. Rest doesn’t mean you’re giving up. It means you’re wise enough to step back before your body shuts down for you.
Rest is not selfish. It’s not indulgent. It’s necessary. And in a culture that rewards overextension, choosing rest is an act of rebellion. It’s saying, “I won’t sacrifice my health for approval.” It’s reclaiming your nervous system, your energy, your sense of self.
Some of the deepest healing happens in stillness. The body recalibrates. The mind softens. The soul exhales. And in that quiet space, you start to hear what you’ve been too busy to feel: grief, joy, fatigue, inspiration. Rest gives those truths room to surface.
So no, you’re not lazy. You’re human. And sometimes the most powerful thing you can do for your health, your work, and your purpose… is to lie down. To close your eyes. To disconnect — not from life, but from the lie that says you must earn your worth through exhaustion.
Because rest isn’t weakness.
It’s resistance.
And it’s time we honor it as medicine.
- About the Author
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Cindy Martin Nagel holds a master’s degree in healthcare and brings over 20 years of experience across the healthcare continuum. As a former hospital administrator, she successfully led two medical centers through transformative growth, championing patient-centered care and operational excellence. In addition to her executive leadership, Cindy is a certified health coach with a passion for helping individuals reclaim their wellness through education, empowerment, and holistic healing.
Her writing draws from a career steeped in both the science and soul of medicine — blending clinical insight with heartfelt storytelling. She has worked alongside physicians, nurses, patients, and families, witnessing firsthand how unspoken emotions often manifest in the body long before a diagnosis does.
Cindy now dedicates her work to exploring the emotional roots of chronic illness, the mind-body connection, and the power of preventative care. Her articles aim not just to inform, but to heal. She believes writing is a form of medicine — one that can reach beyond the walls of a clinic and touch lives in lasting ways.
