“You don’t need to rest.”

It’s a lie the world tells women over and over and over again.

Hustle.
Strive.
Lean in.

It's deafening.

As a young adult, I took the bait and studied my butt off for three degrees.

As a new mother, I spent hours each day scouring job websites.

And as a college lecturer, I endured daily criticism for not sacrificing all of my time and energy to the academic machine.

But there is a dark side to the hard work gospel: It comes at the cost of peace.

This weekend my husband took our kids to his parents’ house and allowed me two full days of personal freedom.

Now that I am a stay-at-home mother, I’d love to tell you that I wrote the whole time - that I cleaned and reorganized the whole house.

But that just wouldn’t be true.

Instead, I mentally regrouped - a luxury, sadly, that I couldn’t give myself permission to enjoy when I was pursuing everyone else’s validation.

But let my story testify:

Slowing down isn’t failure - it’s investing in a sustainable future.

So, if you, too, have felt the world grinding with expectation, what I want to share is this:

The very best version of you needs rest.

And once you get it, I swear, you’ll start to love yourself a little more.

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