When Rest Opens the Door to Emotion

Last week, I learned that recovery has layers.

After the Wellnest Festival, my body collapsed into 14 hours of sleep. I thought that was my rest but the next day, I was already back in meetings, laptop open, energy running again. By midweek, my body spoke louder. I fell ill.

Illness forced me to pause, but even then, my “rest” was just physical. I was recovering from fatigue and sickness, but my emotions were still locked away, pressed under deadlines and messages waiting for replies.

It wasn’t until yesterday, my first true day off in months that I noticed the difference. No laptop. Minimal WhatsApp. Just a skin appointment, a nap, and space.

And then, without the constant noise of tasks and logic, my emotions came flooding in. Feelings I didn’t even know were waiting for me. Longing, grief, tenderness, all surfaced.

At first, I thought it was about a person. But then I realized: it was about me.

💡When we quiet the logical brain, the emotional brain finally has room to speak.

Neuroscience shows that the prefrontal cortex or the “thinking brain” often takes charge when we’re in busy, problem-solving mode. But the limbic system, which governs our emotions, doesn’t simply disappear. It waits. And when the prefrontal cortex softens its grip (like during rest), emotions rise to the surface.(Davidson & McEwen, 2012; Arnsten, 2009)

This is why so many of us feel waves of emotion when we finally stop, on holiday, after a big event, or even just on a quiet Sunday.

And it taught me something vital about balance.

Balance isn’t about being steady all the time. Balance is seasonal.

• Sometimes, it’s the physiological me: productive, logical, energized, building.

• Other times, it’s the tender me: emotional, soft, craving, in need of care.

  
  

Both are real. Both are mine. And both deserve to be honored.

So, if you’re in a season where the emotions are bubbling up the moment you pause, know that it’s not weakness. It’s your body and heart catching up with the pace of your mind.

That, too, is recovery.

References

• Davidson, R. J., & McEwen, B. S. (2012). Social influences on neuroplasticity: Stress and interventions to promote well-being. Nature Neuroscience, 15(5), 689–695.

• Arnsten, A. F. T. (2009). Stress signalling pathways that impair prefrontal cortex structure and function. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 10(6), 410–422.

• Porges, S. W. (2011). The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological foundations of emotions, attachment, communication, and self-regulation.