Once upon a time, I was the girl who loved sleep. I was tired all the time and would daydream about sleeping. This was normal for me from about my early teenage years until just sixty-five days ago. After having three children (none of whom were good sleepers as babies), I believed that being tired was just a part of parenthood... just a part of life. Being tired became my daily answer to, "Hey, how are you doing?" Being tired made life move in slow motion and everything became more difficult than normal because my ability to function was getting worse and worse.
Taking naps here and there helped... but I never felt great. I started to NEED naps in order to make it through the day. Naps became my daily requirement and without a nap, I was cranky and too tired to care. Dinner's not cooking? Oh well. Have cereal. Mommy is tired. Everyone in the family knew how much I NEEDED those naps in order to 'keep it together.'
Even though I don't drink coffee, I could related to this picture. I felt like NOTHING was helping me to get enough rest and feel rested. I was starting to despair because the exhaustion was overwhelming.
Here's the crazy part: I wasn't getting more sleep. I was actually getting LESS sleep because I stopped taking naps.
What a wondrous miracle! ALL I changed was I started taking THRIVE.
My body was not functioning properly and getting the complete nutrition that it needs from the food I eat and so the fatigue began taking over my life. Once I started giving my body the complete nutrition that it craved, my body responded in such a life-changing way that now, it's a distant memory to feel the way I felt before.
Last night, my husband got home from an out of town business trip around midnight. It was after One O'clock in the morning by the time we went to bed. My baby woke up at 3:30 am. Then my four-year old woke up at 4:30 am and he couldn't get back to sleep. I crawled into bed with him and rubbed his back for an hour... still couldn't sleep. By 6 am, I gave up and put a cartoon on for him and I crawled into my own bed. At 7:15, the alarm clock was ringing and it was the first time in a long time for me that I didn't jump out of bed feeling great.
Of course not. I got about two hours of sleep.
That's not nearly enough for my body to get the rest it needs.
But you know what?
It's 2:30 pm and I'm sitting here writing... not feeling awful. Today already I've done laundry, packed some boxes (we're moving this weekend), spent time with my family, did some shopping and I don't feel exhausted. I feel tired... but normally, at this time of the day, I'd be 'crashing' and begging for a nap. Instead, I feel a little tired.
What A MIRACLE Thrive is to me!
This quote speaks loudly to me because isn't it the truth that when we are not rested, we are more stressed and overwhelmed? Another byproduct of THRIVE in my life: less stress. I'm handling life better and getting more accomplished. I'm feeling good therefore I'm more effective in all areas of my life.
I firmly believe that Thrive is a gift from God. After all, the bible says:
God's design for us is to sleep well and wake up feeling refreshed and energized.
THIS is the way our bodies are supposed to function.
Are you experiencing this?
Are you waking up rested and energized and excited for the day?
If not, then I suggest you give THRIVE a try.
Even if better sleep is the ONLY result you experience
(and I'm confident that it would not be)
it would be worth it to feel this way every day.
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