In this second episode of The Summer Self-Care Series, Dr. Nate Lowe shares his transformation from burnt-out success ladder-climber to the teacher of true rest. He takes us through the four rhythms of rest that he teaches to other professionals to help them combat exhaustion, overwhelm, and (of course) burnout.

Dr. Nate Lowe has been an educator for 23 years: teacher, coach, administrator, and now a professor at Indiana Wesleyan University. He got his BS in Education from Taylor University, his MS in Education Administration from Indiana University, and his Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Purdue University.

What Nate teaches us: 

• Rest has been replaced with leisure or escape like binge-watching or medicate ourselves or do things that disengage our brain, but don’t restore us.
• Rest=Doing that which RESTORES.
• Rather than resting during a break, we fill up those weeks, but we get done with that and we need a vacation- THAT IS NOT REAL REST.
• Are you filled up by people or are you filled up by solitude?
• Teachers work in an industry where you don’t see the results of your labor. So do something like painting or gardening where you can see the end results. This will help you with reengaging with the work that needs to be done.

Four Rhythms of Rest:

1. Sleep
   • Adults need 7-10 hours of sleep a night to be at our best.
   • What do you need to do the help yourself to get more and better sleep?
2. Sabbath
   • An extended break. One day that you could identify that is different than the others?
   • Tell your colleagues, administrators that you’re going to be unavailable for 24 hours.
3. Stillness
   • The idea of just being quiet and being still. In an age of constant noise and distraction, take time to connect with yourself.
   • Thinking and concentrating on our purpose and stop to look around and remember why it is that I love education, and why am I a teacher?
   • Schedule time to do nothing. No being productive, no grocery shopping, no swiping.
4. Solitude
   • Allow yourself to be alone. Not alone with your phone, but with yourself.  The idea of personal retreat. Try to get away from the concrete and the glass and get around more green and blue.

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