This year, I’ve found myself carrying three words with me.


Not as goals to strive for, or intentions to perform well at, but as states to return to, again and again.

Regulation. Restoration. Rootedness. 

They have become orienting points in a season shaped by responsibility, transition, and change. Less about doing more, and more about being differently. 

Regulation 

/ˌrɛɡjʊˈleɪʃən/ 

From regulāre, to guide, to bring into order. 

For me, regulation is no longer about resilience as endurance.
It’s about nervous system awareness. 



After prolonged periods of holding, leading, and carrying, I’ve learned that presence doesn’t come from pressure or pushing through. It comes from safety, from noticing what the body needs in order to settle enough to be here. 

Regulation asks us to listen, rather than override. 

Restoration

/ˌrɛstəˈreɪʃən/ 


From restaurare, to renew, rebuild, return to wholeness. 

Restoration reframes rest as an active process of repair. 

Not stopping only when we are depleted, but intentionally replenishing what sustained output, emotional, physical, psychological quietly draws down over time. 

Restoration invites us to ask not “What’s wrong with me?” 
But “What has been overextended, and what now needs care?” 

Rootedness

ˈruːtɪdnəs/ 

From radix, root, origin, source. 

Rootedness is the felt sense of belonging.
In the body. In values. In pace. 

For Black women in particular, rootedness can mean releasing urgency and over-functioning, and reconnecting with steadiness, cultural wisdom, and embodied rest. It is less about proving, and more about remembering who we are when we are not rushing. 



Rootedness doesn’t require explanation. It’s felt. 

Reclaiming Rest

These reflections, shaped by my lived experience and professional practice sit at the heart of Reclaiming Rest, a wellbeing experience I am slowly and intentionally shaping for Black women, with a planned launch in Spring 2026. 

In the meantime, I’ve created a free reflective resource to support gentle exploration of: 

• Regulation in your body 
• Areas that may need restoration 
• What helps you feel rooted 
• Your current relationship with rest 

This resource is an invitation to notice, not to fix. 

Rest is not a reward for productivity.
It is a prerequisite for sustainability. 



This year, I’m not chasing rest.
I’m reclaiming it.