What Stillness Reveals: A Guide on How to Be Still + Return to Self
- For Your Inner G
- May 22
- 4 min read
It’s amazing how quickly life can sit you down. One moment, you’re moving full speed ahead—planning, producing, pushing through. The next? Your body whispers (or maybe screams): "Not today, sis."
Eleven days ago, my knee reminded me that even I, someone who knows better, needed to be still….and not the casual kind of stillness — the deep, spiritual kind. The kind where you can’t move the way you want to, and the only thing left to do is listen.
Now, I know I can’t possibly be the only one.
Some of you reading this may be in your own season of pause. Maybe life has slowed you down through heartbreak, burnout, grief, or just a quiet sense of "I can't keep going on like this." Maybe you’re here because the version of you that does it all is starting to unravel—and part of you is relieved.
Stillness doesn’t always feel like a gift at first. Sometimes, it feels like punishment. Like silence. Like waiting on something you can’t name.
But, let me remind you:
Stillness isn’t a void.
Stillness is sacred.
Stillness is where you come home to yourself.
What Stillness Reveals
In the quiet, you will meet truths you’ve been too busy to hear. You will see your patterns, your pain, and your divine potential.
Here’s how to be still + what this sacred space can offer you, if you let it:
Clarity about where you’ve been running and what you’ve been avoiding.
Conviction to stop performing and start being.
Connection to God, to your breath, to your true self.
Creative Downloads that come when you’re not filling the silence.
How to be Still in Real Time
If you are in a season of rest, you don't have to feel like you’re floating aimlessly.
Here are a few practical rituals and reflective tools to help you anchor into the healing.
1. Sacred Journaling Prompts
Let your pen be your safe space. Let your truth spill without editing or judgment. After all, you’re not writing this to be seen, you’re writing to uncover what you need to recognize and accept about yourself.
What is this moment of stillness trying to teach me?
What have I been avoiding by staying busy?
In what ways is God asking me to surrender?
What version of me is ready to be released?
Where is softness trying to return in my life?
Allowing yourself 5-10 minutes a day to engage in writing can reveal wisdom that your mind alone can’t reach. Take your time answering these questions to fully uncover where you are. This understanding will help you discover where you desire to be.
2. Create a Soft Spiritual Routine
This doesn’t have to be elaborate. Just consistent enough to help you shift your mindset from wanting to attach itself to negative feelings surrounding flowing with your day.
Morning Flow:
Sit in silence before the world wakes up.
Whisper: “God, I’m listening.”
Spend 5-10 minutes in silence. Give yourself permission to hear what your inner world is trying to communicate.
Read one bible verse or affirmation that connects with how you’re feeling or reminds you to rest, trust, and stay open.
Journal what you hear or feel.
Evening Flow:
Light a candle or turn on some relaxing music. Put your phone away.
Write down one thing you’re grateful for experiencing today.
Ask yourself gently: “Where did I resist stillness today?”
Offer grace. Breathe deeply.
3. Nourishing Stillness Rituals
Here are a few small ways to make peace with the quiet and enjoy it:
Make tea and drink it slowly, without multitasking.
Sit in sunlight and let your body be held by the rays and the wind.
Play music that heals you, not just entertains you.
Revisit a sermon, affirmation, or podcast that once spoke life into you.
Practice breath prayer: inhale “I am safe,” exhale “God is here.”
A Word from My Still Place
When life called me to sit, I didn’t want to either. I wanted to go outside. Ride my bike. Sweat it out at the gym. I wanted to be in motion because that’s what I’ve always known.
This time, stillness chose me....and it reminded me of the girl I became when I slowed down years ago—the girl who chose healing over hiding.
If you’re in that season now—resenting the pause, missing your old rhythm, wondering what it all means—breathe, love.
This is a moment, not the end.
Let it grow you.
Let it strip what no longer serves you.
Let it return you to a softer, stronger version of you.
One day, you’ll look back on this moment and whisper,
“I’m so glad I chose stillness.”
With you in the quiet,
❤️ Dr. Amirah
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
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Amirah B. Abdullah, DrPH
Founder of For Your Inner G | Writer + Wellness Educator
Dr. Amirah is a mindset and emotional wellness guide helping ambitious souls shift perspective, deepen self-awareness, and heal with intention. Through her blog, A Gym for the Mind, she shares poetic reflections, grounded strategies, and soulful truths to support your personal growth journey.
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