Doing Well: The Wellbeing Science Insights Podcast · Life Management Science Labs

Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith: The Importance of Rest in Well-being | Doing Well #72

·46 min·3 clips

Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith says emotional and social rest matter because “a lot of us get stressed by other people.”

1. Doing Well: The Wellbeing Science Insights Podcast features Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith on rest and well-being. 2. Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith is an internal medicine physician, work-life integration researcher, and founder of Restorasis, which she says restores well-being in the workplace. 3. The episode asks what rest means, why it is different from sleep, and how people can use it to stay well under pressure. 4. Saundra says she burned out about five years into clinical practice while raising two toddlers on a 60-hour-a-week schedule. 5. She says the research began as a way to stay in medicine without sacrificing her health. 6. She defines well-being across seven areas: physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, social, creative, and financial. 7. She says well-being is not about every area reaching 100%, especially when chronic illness limits one part of life. 8. She says a major misconception is that rest and sleep are the same thing. 9. She says sleep is only one of the seven types of rest and belongs under physical rest. 10. She defines rest as “the restoration of a depletion,” not just stopping activity on weekends. 11. She uses the example of a patient who stops bleeding but may still be anemic after three days of blood loss. 12. She says physical rest can be passive, like sleeping and napping, or active, like massage therapy, a leisure walk, and better ergonomics. 13. She says mental rest can include a brain dump, meditation, or mindfulness when the brain “won’t shut up.” 14. She says rest affects whether people can actually enjoy family, friends, and new experiences instead of collapsing from fatigue. 15. She says chronic stress-related disorders are rising, including elevated blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, diabetes, insomnia, depression, and anxiety. 16. She says stress management is limited because change and challenge cannot be managed away, but rest helps people respond with resilience. 17. The interview style is practical and explanatory, with Marie asking follow-up questions and translating the ideas into everyday examples. 18. The tone stays conversational and coaching-oriented, moving from personal story to medical framing to workplace application. 19. People dealing with burnout, chronic fatigue, or work-life strain. 20. Listeners wanting entertainment without health or workplace advice.

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Doing Well: The Wellbeing Science Insights Podcast