Rest is not just about sleep; it’s a return to ourselves. For Cardum Penn, known as the Nap Guru, rest is a sacred practice, a radical reclamation of softness and safety for Black women who are often taught to push past exhaustion. Through her offerings, Sacred Naps and EmPower Naps, Cardum helps individuals and organizations experience rest as both resistance and repair, guiding them back to a place of healing and wholeness.
The Rest Revelation
“Rest, for me, is not just sleep—it’s the act of intentionally returning to ourselves,” Cardum shares. “It becomes sacred when it happens in spaces of safety and belonging, when it reminds us that we are human beings, not just human doings.” In her work, rest is far more than closing our eyes; it’s a spiritual practice and a radical reminder that Black women deserve softness, quiet, and care.
Transformation Through Stillness
Cardum’s personal journey into rest began with a moment of surrender. “My body simply said, enough,” she recalls. In a counseling session, she asked to rest while her co-counselor held space for her. For the first time, she felt safe enough to truly let go. “That moment taught me the privilege of resting with psychological safety.” Today, she sees that same transformation in her clients, who often leave Sacred Nap sessions in tears, saying they didn’t know their bodies could feel so calm.
Ancestral Wisdom in Rest Rituals
Cardum integrates breathwork, sound, guided imagery, and body scan meditations into her practice, all while honoring ancestral traditions. “Intuitively, I believe rest is about listening,” she says. “Our bodies already know what they need—it’s just that most of us have been trained to override those cues. Rest connects us to generations before us who carried so much so we could arrive here.”
Living WILD
Staying grounded in her WILD self—Well, Inspired, Liberated, and Divine—is an intentional choice. “Being Well is about honoring my body; Inspired means I allow myself to dream and create; Liberated is choosing freedom over burnout; and Divine is remembering that my worth isn’t tied to how much I do, but to who I am,” Cardum explains. Daily breathwork, movement, and rest rituals anchor her to this truth.
Her SwagHer
When asked about her swagher, Cardum radiates clarity. “My swagher is resilience with emphasis on self-definition and authenticity. I know who I am and what I’m here to do—for myself and the global community. I’ve lived through burnout as a leader and reclaimed wellness as a healer. That’s what I bring into every room: the reminder that rest is powerful, necessary, and revolutionary.”
Connect with Cardum
Readers can learn more at SacredNaps.com, where Cardum shares offerings, experiences, and her blog, The Gift of Rest: Reclaiming Safety, Healing, and Humanity. For workplace and organizational wellness, she offers EmPower Naps at EmPowerNaps.com. Follow her on Instagram at @sacred_empower_naps or email her directly at rest@sacrednaps.com.
Catch Cardum as a panelist at Where Wild Women Wander, SwagHer Magazine and The LM Experience’s rest and wellness activation on August 23, 2025, online. Don’t miss this chance to celebrate yourself and connect with like-minded Black women—because Black women deserve rest.
