by Nathalie Herrman

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by time? Like you’re behind, and you can’t keep up, and everywhere you turn there’s a sense of pressure so you’re constantly rushing and you feel exhausted?

If so, you’re not alone. Such feelings are part of modern life. We are overbooked and overburdened, and it seems as if there’s no way out except to do more, be better organized, use technology to our advantage, multitask, and on and on the list goes. But none of this really solves the fundamental problem, which exists in our relation to time itself. We see it as the enemy, and we fight it defiantly at every turn.

But what if we didn’t? What if we could learn to work with time instead of setting ourselves up in opposition to it?

In that space, new possibilities are created—possibilities for relaxed productivity and a sense of ease and enjoyment in our daily routines instead of pressure. We can still be effective and efficient, but without the stress.

Can that really be possible? We are so programmed to be stressed that we probably doubt it, and yet, wouldn’t it be nice if it were?

Try this:

1. Give yourself plenty of time in the morning to relax into the day and not be rushed. Jumping out of bed and being behind right from the get-go sets us up to feel the pressure of not-enough-time all day long, and the extra sleep isn’t worth the stress.
2. Love your routines! Life is repetitive, and we are creatures of habit, so we likely do the same things over and over. If you don’t love something you do every day, change it up so it gives you more pleasure. Little adjustments can make a big difference.
3. Drink plenty of water and eat regularly—don’t skip meals! So much of our angst can be alleviated by being properly fed. Being hungry makes us feel irritable and overwhelmed, and having something delicious and nutritious to eat makes us happy and well.

The Stop Stressing and Align with Time session at the upcoming IAAP Summit 2018 is designed to create just such a possibility for all of us—not in a quick fix, do this, try that way, but in an exploring way, and a way that allows you to discover it for yourself. Life is not meant to be a weekly test of endurance and struggle with a weekend reward every five days, and yet, that’s exactly how so many of us experience it. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We can shift our experience, and the journey can be a compassionate and fulfilling one.

Please join me in Austin to Stop Stressing and Align with Time. For more information on this and many other superb education session, visit www.iaap-summit.org. For the best price, register by the end of January!

Nathalie W. Herrman is the international author of Daily Enlightenments: 365 Days of Spiritual Reflection, and The Art of Good Habits: Health, Love, Presence, and Prosperity. She has a background in business, leadership, and fitness, and has spent her life accumulating experience in the pursuit of optimal health and wellness in herself and others.