Who has time for that?
I’ll sleep when I’m dead.
I wish I could, but I am so busy at work.
Does this sound like you? Do you spend your entire life playing catch-up? Are you always trying to accomplish a never-ending to-do list, only to collapse into bed feeling further behind? Are you existing on drive-through coffee and anxiety meds to keep up with the world’s demands? You’re exhausted and overwhelmed, and life keeps demanding more of you.
Caffeine and Chaos
Life is utterly overwhelming with commitments, schedules, activities, and obligations. You are in that season of life where you figure you’ll meet your needs later. The kids need baths, tomorrow you are snack mom, and three work projects need to be done this week. Self-care is a shower with your favorite bath gel and some late-night phone time. I’m guessing you wake up around 3 a.m. every night. Coffee is the only way to jumpstart your exhausted body out of bed, and the kids know not to speak until that precious cup has been consumed. A glass of wine at night is the only way to calm your finely shredded nerves.
Who Am I, Really?
This level of overwhelm is normalized. We believe this is how we should live: throwing pop tarts in our mouths in the car and wiping the crumbs off as we rush into work. Dinner is made out of a box between school pickup and baseball practice. Communication with our partner…the love of our life…is only expectations and logistics during the weekdays. You feel guilty for snapping at your daughter for not knowing where her backpack is and annoyed with your boss for texting an urgent message as you walked out of the office. The weekend is the only time you can completely zone out. Or catch up on laundry. We feel so overwhelmed, overburdened, and overconnected that we no longer know what we enjoy.
Live in Alignment
Make time for yourself. Make yourself a priority. The solution sounds so simple. It’s almost laughable. But it’s so important. It’s the most important thing you can do for your own well-being. It is the only way to overcome this overwhelm. And it is the thing I have found after speaking to hundreds of women that we need the most support to do.
The activities we generally associate with self-care and self-love are fun and definitely have a place in life (I’m never going to turn down a pedicure!), but, self-care is a bit more nuanced than that. Self-care is living in alignment with the life you want within the value and belief system you draw from. Respect for your mental, physical, and emotional well-being and setting boundaries and routines are the only ways to find the balance your mind and body so desperately need.
The Best Version of You
Prioritizing yourself does not mean you stop caring for others or abandon all your obligations. It does mean that you begin to adjust your time. Aligning your focus on your life’s vision lets you let things go that no longer serve you. Your happiness, not the fear of someone else’s disappointment, drives you. And in the end, you have a better version of yourself to offer everyone else.
End the Chaos
The truth is, this cycle of chaotic existence can be changed…it really can. You must be your own biggest fan! Making the choice to become your priority…to truly consider what the life you want to live looks like… creates a balance in your time and connection with the life and the health that you want and need. Only when we can find this balance can we conquer the overwhelm…and the resulting illness…that stems from it!
Find Balance
This process takes time. It takes baby steps and requires progress without the expectation of perfection. You must become comfortable with being uncomfortable, but the result is a strong foundation for any goal you set for yourself. You know how to adjust your life for what truly matters, and you are prepared to see your goals through…because you know that you have committed to yourself. Once you are committed to balance in your life, your schedule will allow for these goals to be pursued! Ensuring that there is balance in mind, body, and spirit is the new health model we should strive for. The absence of disease is no longer enough to be considered healthy!
Our world is not slowing down (barring another global pandemic!), so we must learn to find the stillness in our lives that brings us peace.
We must claim it.
We must do the work to ensure that we keep it.
We must make ourselves our own priority.
We must overcome overwhelm.
Our health depends on it.