What If Rest Is The Missing Piece Of Your Health

You can love your job, love your routine, and still be slowly drained by it. We talk about why taking a break is not a fancy indulgence but a real health strategy, especially when life feels like a constant grind of responsibilities, bills, and never-ending to-do lists. When we don’t step away, stress starts to chip at our peace, our mood, and even our ability to be present with the people we care about.

We walk through the most practical health benefits of vacation time and true rest: lower stress and a calmer nervous system, better sleep and deeper recovery, improved mood, and that “crystal clear” focus many of us only notice after we finally unplug. We also dig into creativity and problem-solving, and why getting out into nature and away from the normal structure can clear mental clutter, spark new ideas, and help us come back with better answers instead of more exhaustion.

We also explore the physical side of time off, including the role of cortisol, muscle tension, and why chronic stress can contribute to heart-related problems. Plus, we look at the social benefits: stronger relationships, better teamwork, more life satisfaction, and the long-term value of creating memories through simple adventures. Finally, we share why burnout can steal the joy from even your greatest talent, and how “joyful anticipation” gives you something healing to look forward to.

If this resonates, subscribe for more simple, grounded health conversations, share this with someone who needs permission to rest, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show. What kind of break would actually recharge you right now?

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Welcome And The Case For Breaks

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Well, hello, and welcome to the Healthy Living Podcast. I'm your host, Joe Grombine, and today I'd like to talk about taking a break. And I just got back from a vacation not too long ago, and it's something that I've learned that if I don't do it at least once a year, I will feel negative impact. If I do it, I will definitely feel a positive impact. And I think that a lot of times we find ourselves striving for things, working hard, struggling, getting stuck in the day-to-day check-to-check rat race, rhythm, whatever you want to call it. And the truth is, even if you have to make a sacrifice, I believe that there are tremendous health benefits to taking a break, stopping for a little while, and relaxing and getting yourself out of the normal habits, the normal structure, the normal workload, all the things that we normally do. I think over time start to wear away at our peace, at our joy, at our happiness. Even if we think we enjoy the things we do. Like, for example, you know, I run the Gardens of Hope, little botanical garden and a little farm out here in Southern California. And I love it. I love this property. I love being here. I wake up every morning at dawn. I can't wait to get outside. I love, you know, since I beat the cancer, I love working. I love working hard. I love getting my strength back. I love dealing with the people that are coming out here to get healing benefits. I love the retreats. I love the medicine. I love the sweat lodges. All of it. I love it. But there's a constant level of, I don't know if I call it stress, but yeah, on some level, it's a stressor that, you know, at any minute somebody could come over. I've got to keep the place looking to a certain standard. I've got a wife who's always very sensitive to these things, how everything looks. I can only do so much of any one thing at any given time because I got to be able to clean it up because somebody may be coming over. And that's just one of many deals. I I love my Willow Creek Springs business where I manufacture, I formulate, I make natural skincare products, natural remedies. I I love that. I love working with clients, but you know, sometimes we'll get more business than we can deal with. And and you know, we're it's just me and my wife right now, and you know, sometimes that can become stressful. Sometimes we don't get enough business and the bills aren't getting paid. Whatever. There's there's a million reasons why that day-to-day grind, even of something that you love, you know, been self-employed most of my life, the last more than 20 years, and as much as I love it, I love the work I do. There's a level of stress to being responsible for everything, to being the only one that if anything goes wrong, you can deal with, you know, that can deal with it. Uh, you don't get to just go, well, you know, the next shift will take care of it, or the boss will deal with it, or whatever. And so I just want to talk a little bit today about the health benefits of taking a break. And we've talked about offering a reset retreat at Gardens of Hope. We're working on that. And the idea is going to be to unplug

The Reset Retreat Idea

SPEAKER_00 4:26

from your electronic devices, come out here for a weekend, and do some things you don't normally do. See some things you don't normally see. Different experiences. I think that's that's a big part of it. So let's just walk through a little bit of this. I think the first obvious health benefit is you're gonna reduce your stress by taking time to relax and recharge. You're gonna get more rest, more sleep. You don't have anything you have to do on a true vacation. You're gonna sleep better because you're not stuck having to get that report done for tomorrow. You don't, you don't have to think about the things that are coming. Maybe you're a little excited about you know what you're gonna do tomorrow, but at the end of the day, you can rest. You can sit in a hammock in the middle of the day, take a nap, those kind of things. And the reduced stress is definitely a health benefit. Another thing that maybe you think about or maybe you don't is you get a better mood.

Stress Relief And Better Sleep

SPEAKER_00 5:43

You know, as much as again, we may enjoy our job, there's this level of you gotta be in a certain way, you gotta you gotta think a certain way, you gotta, you gotta behave a certain way. And true happiness, true satisfaction, true joy, I think generally comes when you don't have the pressure, when you can kind of do what you want. You want to go out and get something to eat, you wanna sit by a stream, you want to go on a little day trip, you wanna whatever it is you want to do, you want to go shopping, you want to take a hike, whatever, you can do it. And I think it definitely brings a better mood. And I think that that is healthy. I think as we find our mood, our demeanor, our the way we carry ourselves, I think it affects our health more than we would give it credit for. I think people that are generally sunny and positive are generally more healthy, and people that are generally dark and negative are generally less healthy. That's just my observation. Maybe it's not true, but it's what I've seen. Focus. I think what I've noticed, especially for me, is you know, I'm a Gemini, I'm always juggling a million things. I I write stuff down, then I forget where I put it, and I keep track of things, you know, on paper for a while, and then I'd stop. And I got a good brain enough, you know, that the chemo messed me up a bit, but it's coming back. And I'm generally able to manage all of my things that I need to do in my head. And over time, you lose your focus, you get too many things going on, you forget a thing, and I don't know how many things I've forgotten since the cancer, but you go, shit, you know, what how did I forget that? How didn't I think about that? Or you're sitting there, somebody's talking to you, and you you lose track. And you know, what was that you said again? I know when I come back from my vacation, I am crystal clear. I feel like I'm locked in. I can be very mindful and present with what I'm doing. And definitely I think I think it's been a benefit to my focus. Creativity, I think, again. Creative people, people, writers and artists, and writers maybe especially.

Mood Gains And More Joy

SPEAKER_00 8:41

You get going into a groove and you're writing along, and all of a sudden, you know, you just you've been doing that thing for too long, and you just get stuck. And you just can't seem to pull yourself out of it. And I just know that you know, taking time away for me is getting to the water, getting to a lake, a stream, catching a fish or two, um, just hearing feeling the water, whether it's the ocean or or the fresh water, it just I know that it does something in my brain, it wipes it clear the the things that keep me from being creative. I think it it it clears that away. And that's simple mental health benefits, you know, those are just straight up without really going too deep. I think uh physically in that venue, I think your cortisol levels, which is your stress hormone, I think they drop because of your better improved mood. It's easy to be happy when you're in the place you want to be, wherever that is. Doing the things you want to do, whatever they may be. I

Focus And Creativity Return

SPEAKER_00 10:07

think you have definitely a decreased risk of depression. So when you're stuck in your your work grind, and a lot of people get overwhelmed, depressed over things they can't control, but they need to deal with. And I think there's a whole lot less of that. I think you get better sleep. It's not just the amount of sleep or how easy it is, but I think you sleep deeper. I think you can let yourself go to rest better. And the length of time that you are on vacation definitely matters. I know that one time in my life I took a two-week vacation in the same place. It wasn't until after the first five days, I think, that I really was able to completely let go and get into another level of relaxation. I remember that second week was just a whole nother level, and I had never experienced anything like that before or since. And I definitely aspire to do that again. As I'm getting older, I'm certainly going, I like probably a good time for me to take a two-week vacation. But, you know, life life has its uh reasons. These are all things that I think definitely affect your mental health into your physical health. I think we can just start knocking off a pretty big list. Regular time off can help lower the risk of heart-related

Cortisol Drop And Depression Risk

SPEAKER_00 11:52

problems. The chronic stress that we live in contributes heavily to cardiovascular issues. And when you just let that stress go by, I think it it definitely decreases the likelihood of an episode like that. Once again, you get into the sleep and all the sleep-related issues, improved physical activity. A lot of times what happens is when we are taking a break, we get out there and do more. You hike, you swim, you play volleyball. Whatever it is that you do, you find yourself instead of doing that grind, that normal thing, man. Then maybe, you know, you normally go to the gym and get your workout, but it's a different thing when you're playing, when you're relaxing, when you're swimming, snorkeling, hiking, kayaking, whatever it is that you're doing that's physical, I think you do it in a different way. You do it with some joy, you do it with some enthusiasm. Maybe you push yourself a little bit more and you enjoy it. So there's definitely a benefit to increasing your physical activity as a result of time off. I think that muscle tension is something that comes from the day-to-day grind. You know, you come home and your back's all sore and kinked, your neck's all knotted, you know, maybe a massage helps, maybe a steam helps, maybe a drink or some pot or some drugs, or whatever it is you do helps. But the truth is just laying around, having a good conversation, reading a book or a magazine, just watching the waves, whatever it is you're doing, definitely causes that muscle tension to go away or at least reduce. I think that's definitely a health benefit. I think that the mental benefit to a vacation is probably the most marked. And we talked a little bit about a bit, but I

Heart Health Activity And Muscle Relief

SPEAKER_00 14:18

think it increases or improves your memory. Because I think our memory is connected to how many things we're trying to manage, you know, like a computer and RAM and how many windows you have open, and you know, you can remember things, but the more things you're trying to juggle, turns out your brain can only do one thing at a time, so it's going back and forth and back and forth. You get on vacation and you're thinking about fewer things, you're dealing with fewer things, and I don't know. I think it definitely is like uh the old-fashioned defrag and wiping your files clean and restructuring things, giving yourself a chance to free up junk space and let it be more valuable again. I think along with creativity being improved, I think you also improve your problem solving skills. I think that creativity and problem solving are are very related, but it's a practical application. So I know there's been times when I've taken time off, and you know, there's always things we struggle with. I a formula, uh a problem that just it doesn't seem like it has an easy answer. And then all of a sudden, after a couple of days off, you're like, ah, there it is. You just turn it this way or add that to it, or whatever it is. So that's definitely a I think it's definitely a benefit, is your problem solving skills get better. There's social benefits. I think relationships do better when you get time off, and it could be

Memory And Problem Solving Improve

SPEAKER_00 16:19

either way, whether it's taking time from the relationship or taking time with the relationship. Uh, if you take a vacation with your spouse or your significant other, or whoever it is that you're close to, I think you can certainly bond, get to know each other better, explore some new things, wake up some elements of your life that might have been sleeping or resting. If you've been struggling a little bit or maybe you've seen each other too much, maybe taking a vacation from each other is gonna cause you some good, just to maybe appreciate each other a little better, remembering the value that they bring in your life and the the joys that they bring. I think that when you take a break from work, especially in a setting where you're working with other people and you come back, I think you are more likely to want to work together better. And I think that it spending too much time with the same people doing the same things, I think is not beneficial to a team environment or collaborative environment. I think when you cycle back and forth and work together and then spend time off, I think you do better. And I suppose there's ways to quantify that, but just an observation at this point. Uh I think that your overall life satisfaction increases when you take time off. You know, we look at

Relationships And Life Satisfaction

SPEAKER_00 18:07

our life and our health, and we say, well, you know, I can quantify certain things, I can do blood work, I can do stress tests, I can look at my numbers of things and say that I'm healthy or not. My weight, my my vital signs, all those things. My vision, my hearing, all the things that you can measure. But then there's just this quality of life, you know. I feel good. I I feel like life is great, you know. Now I've had an example where I almost lost my life to cancer, and so having my life back has definitely increased my life satisfaction. I'm happy every morning when I wake up, I get another day to live. So that's another way to go looking at it. Certainly not something I would recommend for most people. I think personal growth improves. You get time to think about your big goals, your big picture a little bit. You can look and take some time and and do a little reverie and look back on where you've come, how far you've come, obstacle you've overcome. I think another thing that you can look at is creating memories and sharing experiences, engaging in adventures. I think there's something so special about that. I just recently took my four-year-old grandson Xavier up to the eastern Sierras for his first time, and I

Memories Adventures And Nature

SPEAKER_00 19:56

said, you know, we're gonna have an adventure. And I can remember at about four years old, my dad took me fishing for the first time at a little city lake out by Rosemead. And I can remember catching that first fish, a little bluegill. I can remember the Uno candy bar that we shared. I can remember the soda, you know. I never had that stuff generally. Remember just sitting there in a little lattice-weaved beach chair with my dad, and and just spending that time four friggin' years old. I remember that. Well, I was able to take this kid out on a lake, on a boat, take him to a bunch of new places, see new things. And I know that you know it was a lot for him, and you know, he missed his mom every now and again. But this kid had an adventure, and I was able to share that, and it was amazing. And I think that you know, me and my wife, we've gone and seen new places and and experienced things that we wouldn't normally do, even in our beautiful little paradise that where we live, go into another place of where the wonder of nature, and and you know, know what you might find, you might hear, you might see. You prevent burnout by taking these breaks. You know, there's nothing worse than somebody who uh has a career, a life's path

Burnout Prevention And Passion Reset

SPEAKER_00 21:42

built on a joy, a talent, something that you know you do very well. And then after a while, you're just like, God dang it, I don't want to do this anymore. And you think to yourself, what happened? You know, I used to get so much joy, musicians. Get it. My daughter's accomplished classical flamenco guitarist. And you know, she was out there making money playing gigs. And then one day she's like, I don't want to do it anymore. And I was like, what the hell? If I have that kind of talent, I wouldn't, that's all I would ever do. You know, people, writers stop writing, singers stop singing, athletes stop, you know, playing their sport, they get burned out. I don't want to do this anymore. And I think just taking a break can help you to reset that enthusiasm, that spark, the passion for the thing that you do and love. And I think that's a good thing. There's a thing called joyful anticipation. And this is something that I've talked

Joyful Anticipation And Vitamin J

SPEAKER_00 22:54

about in the past. I call it the vitamin J, but the anticipation part of it, I think, is powerful and healing and restorative. And when you have a vacation coming up, you know, you start thinking about it, you start, oh, you know, there's a there's a time about a week ahead of time where I go and I get my fishing license and I go and go through my gear and I stock up on things I'm low on, or get something new if I need it. There's a little excitement about it. Getting in the car, packing up, getting all the food in your ice chest, or thinking about where we're gonna go to eat, or what we're gonna eat, where we're gonna go. There's that anticipation, kind of like a little kid before Christmas. You know, you just can't wait. There's something just super restorative and healing about that. I don't think we get enough of that. We don't have enough things to look forward to anymore. And I think a vacation can be full of that. So I think to wrap up this thought, I just want, and it doesn't have to be traveling far. It could be, it doesn't

Vacation Can Be Simple

SPEAKER_00 24:08

have to be for weeks or months, it could be a day or two days, but getting away, something else, change of pace, change of scenery. I don't think it's just a luxurious indulgence. I think they're vital for maintaining health and well-being. I think it reduces stress, improves mental health, helps to foster personal growth, makes relationships better. I just think that the benefits of taking a vacation so far outweigh the cost and the detriments that I would say do it. Prioritize that vacation. You're gonna end up with a more balanced, fulfilled, and healthier life. And, you know, I'll be paying off this vacation probably in the next couple of months, and who cares? I feel good doing it, and I just am so glad that I had the good sense to get the heck out of town for a few days, and I encourage you to do the same. Well, this has been another episode of the Healthy Living Podcast. I'm your host, Joe Grombine, and I want to thank all of our listeners for making this show possible, and we will see you

Closing Thanks And Encouragement

SPEAKER_00 25:26

next time.