I am a type A person. A co-worker once joked, “You’ve cured cancer by the time I even get out of bed in the morning.”

There’s a flip side to that of course: I push myself hard and the stress does adversely affect me.

A few years back I set a schedule so that I’m either writing or exercising before work. Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday are writing days while Tuesday, Thursday and Sundays are run days.

But I encountered a problem with all that: When you push yourself too hard, you eventually crack. Sure, I can go on like that for a while, but getting 5-6 hours of sleep a night and then being out of the house for work for 11 hours of the day doesn’t leave me with much time to do all the other things I need to do in my life.

Instead of easing up, I sometimes cram too much in and then break down (either I get sick or I snap at the stupidest thing).

There’s a better way and it might sound counter-intuitive.

Keep in mind that having grown up in a dysfunctional family that as the oldest child, I took on great responsibility. I often take on more than I can chew and I’ll get the work done, but I sacrifice my own health.

Thankfully, I’ve gotten better at saying no and giving myself space to breath and relax.

Time and time again, when I’m overwhelmed, I’ve found that taking time to relax and being still is the best medicine.

When I can’t find an answer to a problem, or I’m so stressed out that I don’t know what is the best path to take, there is one simple thing that I can do that will help:

Unplug, sit still, close my eyes and focus on my breathing.

The Power of a Relaxed Mind

Go, go, go! That’s my normal state of mind. I’m working, planning, strategizing and juggling a bunch of things all at the same time. The problem is that I’ve learned that multi-tasking really doesn’t work. Striving to keep multiple balls up in the air at the same time might seem like a great idea in the short-term, but over the years, I’ve found that it’s best to ease up, relax and give myself time to breathe.

The problem is that when stressed out we often want to push harder, go faster, do more.

That’s usually the worst response for me.

Instead, taking time to unplug (this is critical) will help.

If the weather’s nice, I find that I can do the following:

• Go for a run (no headphones!)

• Take a walk (leave phone off)

• Sit in a quiet space and just relax

Now that we are so connected to the internet and have so many different influences on us each day (TV, phone, computer, people, billboards, traffic, etc.) we often don’t get time to just think.

That might be scary at first. When you give yourself time to think, all sorts of thoughts and feelings might rise to the surface. Hurt, fear and worry could bubble up. But allowing ourselves time to feel and then accept those feelings is a way to cleanse them from our body and mind.

The light visualization exercise that I shared in Day 2 is a great activity to use to help intentionally clear the mind. I believe that our brains need to be rebooted from time to time. If we’re not getting enough sleep, then taking time out of our day to chill and be still will help you.

And the added benefit: When I’m relaxed, creative ideas always pop into my head. Every novel that I’ve written has come about because I’ve given myself the time to just think and relax.

I can push, push and push harder OR I can take a step back, chill out a few minutes by unplugging and feel a lot better.

You would think that I would have this figured out by now, but don’t feel bad if you struggle to let go. Be kind to yourself. In the long run, I’ve found that it works out best for me (and I feel a heck of a lot better) if I make time for stillness.

Like what you’ve read? Be sure to check out my other posts in my Let Go and Be Free blog.