TammieSo many things creep up on you when you are going fast, too fast to notice, bill’s, Christmas, armpit hair, anxiety, kilos, the decline of your relationship. I’m not sure when going fast became a habit but I do know that it is the close cousin of multi-tasking and rushing woman syndrome. Rushing Women’s Syndrome is a term coined by Dr Libby to describe the cascade of hormonal changes that happens when we feel stressed for extended periods. It can manifest in anything from unexplained weight gain to fatigue to mood swings. If you are feeling tired but wired then it might be time to slow down.
Some of the side effects of Going Too Fast are listed below, see how many you tick off:
- Waking in the middle of the night and thinking of things to worry about
- When asked by someone how you are you respond by saying, “Busy”.
- You’ve lost the art of being able to relax
- You constantly forget things, big and small
- You are snappy and cranky with the people around you
- You overreact when things don’t go to plan
- You don’t make good food choices
- You have poor digestion
- You can’t tell if you are stressed and anxious anymore because its become a way of life
- Your house is too messy or too clean
- You find it hard to go to sleep at night because you are tired but wired
- There is little joy in your daily life or the activities you do
- You over exercise or don’t exercise at all
- You can’t lose weight
- You constantly feel overwhelmed
Some of the ways you can start to go slow:
- Just do things more slowly i.e. eating, walking, having coffee with a friend
- Notice the desire to rush through things to get to the next task and disrupt this thought process by focusing on something that’s happening in the present
- Take 10 deep breathes, do this throughout the day or use a breathing technique – YouTube Video with Tammie
- Go outside and stand on the grass or look at the sky whilst lying on your back. Contemplating the universe has a way of bringing things back into perspective
- Take a self care holiday. Try our Bali Self Care Mini Break or Ubud Getaway to really unwind.
- Go to the markets, (yes I know it is convenient to get everything at woolies all at once) but go to the markets and talk to local producers and buy fresh produce then at home make yourself something delicious and fresh to eat and then sit by yourself or with loved ones and eat this meal in a lingering way enjoying every last bite
- Do a mind, body, soul practice, Tai Chi, Dance, Yoga, Mediation something that allows you to connect to your deeper self and notice what’s happening in you body and mind. This helps you to set your priorities and become in alignment with your souls desires
- Schedule down time – this Saturday I am going to spend half the day lying on the lounge reading a book
- Do something that you only reserve for holidays like painting your toenails
- Start a daily skin care routine of cleansing and moisturising your skin
- Join your local library and actually sit at the library to read magazines and books each time you change your books
- Play a game with the kids, how slow can you go
- Discuss the impact of rushing with your partner, work colleagues in an attempt to enlist their support for the going slow movement
The idea is to create a sense of spaciousness in your life. The slower you go the more time you seem to have, rushing and stressing leads to an inefficient use of time and unhappy person. Choose 3 things you can do more slowly next week and see the difference.
You might also like to use our Vibrancy Chart to monitor your Mind, Body, Spirit health.
