When We Need to Take Space: a loving strategy when recovering from overwhelm and burnout
There comes a moment in every journey when the environment that once nurtured us begins to feel tight. Not because it’s wrong, but because we’ve grown or we need to return to ourselves to grow. Like a plant whose roots have outgrown its pot, we find ourselves yearning for more space, more light, more air.
When we feel lost in overwork, parenting, or challenging patterns of relating, realigning ourselves is our work. Overwhelm is one of the red flags to look out for. Restoring our inner harmony and coherence is not something anyone can do for us.
For a long time, we may live in spaces filled with love, history, and connection. They become our homes, our sanctuaries. But sometimes, a quiet whisper begins to stir—a call to step into a new environment, one where healing and expansion are possible in ways they weren’t before.
It’s not that the current environment is bad. Far from it. It’s just that our roots need more room, and our leaves need a different kind of sunlight.
This is the essence of taking space.
It’s the decision to move into a new place for periods of time—not to escape, but to reset, to breathe, to allow our systems to heal. It’s about creating the conditions for growth, so we can return stronger and more present.
This decision is rarely easy. It’s filled with emotion, gratitude, and hope. But it’s necessary. Because just like a plant needs the right soil and light to thrive, we need environments that support our healing. Typically, it will require us to let go of something or someone that we have been clinging to in some way.
If you’re feeling the pull to take space, know this: it’s okay. It’s not abandonment—it’s self-care. It’s not rejection—it’s growth. You can’t pour from an empty pitcher.
The love and connection that nourished you will always be part of your soil. But sometimes, to grow, you need to find a new patch of sunlight for a while. Depending on who you are, that new patch of sunlight might look like moving out on your own or it might look like saying no to something so you can take a class that restores you to alignment.
Maybe more time in nature or joining a club is what is needed. Alignment feels “right” somehow. It is what many people describe feeling when they are in flow—things don’t bother them as much, they feel more overall wellness, they are less reactive and more capable of patience and tolerance.
A quote I came across a long time ago read:
Your new life is going to cost you your old one.
This is why it’s uncomfortable. We naturally have resistance to change. But change is possible and necessary. The Unity Bubble supported therapy process brilliantly and gently helps us to digest this truth in our own lives.
Contact me if you want to learn more. Check out my other post about the Unity Bubble which explains more.
And here is a favourite poem of mine that speaks to this topic:
And here is one of my favourite readings of this poem—part of a larger lecture called “The Poetry of Self Compassion” by David Whyte:
