Honor Diastole: Rest as a Heart and Nervous System Practice
Diastole is the phase of the heartbeat when the heart muscle relaxes and allows the chambers to fill with blood.
The idea of a heart needing to relax in order to continue to function properly extends to each of us as individuals.
Effective systole—heart pumping to nourish the rest of the body—depends on effective diastole.
Diastolic dysfunction is when the heart doesn’t fill fully and well.
One of the simplest treatments for diastolic dysfunction is to slow the heart rate down.
By honoring diastole, we honor ourselves.
Rest is not optional. It’s physiology.
Just like our hearts, we must honor ourselves by relaxing and nourishing our minds, bodies, and spirits so that we may nourish others.
Our hearts “know” this.
Diastole is not a luxury. It is a requirement for long-term function.
And yet most of us do not live in a way that honors rest, refilling, and relaxing.
How can you honor diastole in your life?
What might happen to your systole—your output, your giving, your leadership—if you slowed down, paused, and were present?
Retreats are one way to honor diastole
They are an intentional gift for a healthy heart, mind, and spirit.
When we retreat, we create space for reflection. We pause, rest, and reset.
We open our bodies, hearts, and minds. We rediscover meaning, purpose, and wellbeing.
We shift perspective. We nourish ourselves. And by honoring diastole, we become more able to nourish others.
If you’re craving breathing room, nervous system downshifting, and genuine nourishment, here are two places you can begin to honor diastole:
Nicasio Creek Farm Women Physician Coaching Yoga Mindfulness and Culinary Medicine CME Retreats
Connect in Nature Mindfulness Retreat at Green Gulch Farm and Zen Center and Muir Woods
I would love to share this kind of diastole with more of you.
***The original Honoring Diastole Retreat at Pie Ranch is currently on hiatus but may return in 2027. Teams can still organize a private Honoring Diastole Retreat by reaching out directly.