Keke Palmer says she's learning how to rest and relax after 'many seasons sacrificing'
Keke Palmer is making rest a top priority in 2023.
The Nope star, 29, took to Instagram on Tuesday to share photos from her beachy babymoon, along with a caption about attempting to relax, even when it doesn't come naturally.
"I'm really proud of myself for resting this trip," the Nickelodeon alum wrote. "I am antsy by nature. i love having a schedule, even on vacation. i learned to at least schedule things leisurely so i have something to complete that's on brand with the theme of the season. Which is rest."
She joked that she would refrain from calling this restful period part of a "soft girl life" — a social media-coined phrase about making choices that minimize stress and prioritize mental health, which many Black women are embracing — but said that rest was just as important to her as hard work.
"I have spent many seasons sacrificing and i am quite fine with that, i learned that from my father," Palmer continued. "From both my parents, but my dad takes the cake. i want to be just like him. his life is full and he has given so much. i don't think giving or sacrificing are bad things, it's who i am and that will never change. but every season we are meant to embrace something new."
Palmer shared that she is going to learn how to "really take it easy," noting that "doesn't mean my drive and passion will end, just transform and evolve through a different tool."
"The point is. everything that’s going to come is already in motion," she wrote. "All i have to do is enjoy. be grateful and reap the benefits of those that came before me, all the sacrifices, all the prayers and all the power to be intentional and at EASE."
Palmer's Hollywood peers applauded her message. Her Joyful Noise co-star Queen Latifah wrote, "Yes Keke. So happy for you and your family and pay the cost to be the boss! And the boss gets to take a day off." Sherri Shepherd added, "Embrace rest because when the Baby is here - the word 'rest' goes out the window! Welcome to motherhood!"
Palmer previously opened up about her work ethic in an August interview with Women's Health. Since starting her career as a child star, she told the outlet it was common for her to work herself to "the point of exhaustion," and that "it became a habit to hustle hard."
"I realized it's hard to say no because we don’t trust. We don't trust that if we say no the opportunity will come again," she told the magazine. "Or we don't trust that if we say no we've made the right choice. Or we're scared that if we say no we're going to offend somebody. But I realized that saying yes to too many things was stressing me out the most. I've learned not to be afraid to rearrange things and to accept that I'm not going to be able to do it all without hurting myself."
She's learned that it’s important to say no to things, as not doing so would be a "dishonor" to herself.
"It's been two years since I embarked on this whole 'saying no' thing, and I must say, I'm getting really good at it now," she said. "That's the grace and the silver lining. Everything I've been through has taught me how to love myself more."
Wellness, parenting, body image and more: Get to know the who behind the hoo with Yahoo Life's newsletter. Sign up here.
