Not all rest is sleep: reflections on energy, fatigue, and 7 types of rest

I’ve been thinking a lot about rest lately. Not sleep — though that too — but the kind of deep restoration that’s hard to come by when you're living with a chronic illness.

Fatigue is one of the most common, complex symptoms in autoimmune and chronic pain conditions. It's the kind of tiredness that doesn't go away with a nap. And yet, for years, I approached my own fatigue mostly by trying to “sleep better” — believing that if I could just fix my bedtime routine or get the right number of hours, I’d eventually feel like myself again.

But I didn’t.

And I’m not alone.

So when I came across Sacred Rest by Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith — a physician who has worked with many patients experiencing profound, unexplained exhaustion — it struck a chord. She describes a common but overlooked reality: that we confuse sleep with rest, and as a result, we often overlook other types of restoration our bodies, brains, and nervous systems may be desperately lacking.

In the book, she outlines seven distinct types of rest, each targeting a different system in the body or mind. Her framework has helped me think more clearly — both as a person living with chronic illness, and as a clinician supporting others who are navigating fatigue, burnout, and low vitality.

I’d like to share a brief overview of these seven types with you — not as a prescription, but as an invitation to reflect on what kind of rest you might be missing.

1. Physical Rest

This is the one we know best — sleep, naps, stillness. But it also includes active rest: gentle movement, stretching, and therapeutic bodywork that supports circulation and fluidity.
For those of us with chronic conditions, active rest can sometimes be more restorative than lying still.

2. Mental Rest

Have you ever lain down at night and felt your brain refuse to switch off? Racing thoughts, looping worries, information overload.
Mental rest looks like intentional mental pauses: journaling, taking regular breaks from task-switching, and creating structure for your thoughts instead of letting them spiral.

3. Sensory Rest

Chronic illness often makes us more sensitive to stimuli: noise, screens, bright lights. Sensory rest is about intentional quiet — closing your eyes for a minute, turning off your devices, and letting your senses decompress.

4. Creative Rest

This one surprised me. Creative rest is about restoring your sense of wonder — whether it’s through nature, beauty, or meaningful art.
For those of us managing chronic illness, creativity often gets sidelined. But time spent with visual art, music, or even just staring at trees, can reawaken something deeply restorative.

5. Emotional Rest

This is the rest we need when we feel like we’re constantly “on” — masking pain, downplaying struggle, or holding back emotion to protect others.
Emotional rest is about safe expression. It can be as simple as saying, “I’m not okay,” or writing something just for yourself. Dr. Dalton-Smith writes that emotional rest means having space to be fully you — without performance.

6. Social Rest

This isn’t about seeing fewer people — it’s about differentiating between draining interactions and energizing ones.
Chronic illness can be incredibly isolating. But even one conversation with someone who “gets it,” where you don’t have to explain yourself, can be powerfully restorative.

7. Spiritual Rest

This doesn’t have to mean religion. It’s about connection — to something greater than yourself, to meaning, to a sense of belonging.
Spiritual rest might come through nature, meditation, community, or quiet reflection. It’s the kind of rest that reminds us we're not alone in this.

Since learning about this framework, I’ve started asking myself a new kind of question: What kind of tired am I?
And instead of defaulting to “I must need more sleep,” I’ve begun gently exploring where my deeper deficits are — especially when it comes to sensory and emotional rest.

If you live with chronic illness, you may already be doing so much to care for yourself. And yet, fatigue still lingers. Maybe this lens can offer a bit of clarity — or a new way to approach energy management that feels more attuned, more complete.

You’re not lazy. You’re not doing it wrong. But you might be running on the wrong kind of empty.

Let this be your invitation to rest — in all the ways you need.