Call it stress, or being overworked, or just feeling like there’s too much going on around you — there are going to be days when you just don’t want to try.

I recently read an article in Yoga Journal called “Get Over It”. The premise of the article was about how, in a yoga practice, there are going to be days when you just don’t feel up to it. What struck me, though, was that this sense of “not feeling up to it” can happen in almost anything we’re doing, and during any day of our lives.

For me, I feel I just don’t have it in me to try any harder when I’m doing too much. Yep, I suffer from very busy days that start out at 4:40am and finish somewhere around 10:30pm. Part of that busy-ness comes from the day job (gotta pay the bills!) and part of it comes from my writing (it’s my passion!) and part of it comes from managing a household and a family and a host of other things that I tack on because, in my mind, they need to be done.

Well, it’s those “host of other things” that cause me problems. I’ve realized recently that a lot of my stress is self-inflicted. Trying to do too many things that, at the end of the day, really don’t add anything meaningful to my life.

This is where I’m learning (or hope I’m learning) patience. And a little more simplicity.

Let me share. In the past several months, maybe a little longer, I’ve discovered that being married to my iPhone and email and social media isn’t always a good thing. It eats into time that, in all honesty, could be better spent doing other things. Like watching the night sky, or enjoying dinner with my family with no interruptions, or listening to music with just me, myself, and I.

And as I’ve learned to enjoy more of that simplicity, I’ve discovered that there isn’t anything I can’t face without a little more patience. With myself. I’ve also discovered that those days when I just don’t want to try aren’t as bad as they seem, because self-patience has a way of putting things in perspective.

Want to know why? Because self-patience — those pauses a person takes to enjoy a few deep breaths without reacting — translates into less negative self-talk. It stops you from thinking things like, “I have to do this”, and “I should be doing that”, and “At this rate, I’ll never get this done.”

I think our internal-speak can be our own worst enemy — at least it is for me — and I’m discovering that the days I feel I don’t want to try are the days when my internal speak, the woulds and shoulds, is at its loudest. That’s when I make the choice to let the thoughts drift away along with my self-imposed deadlines and just enjoy the moment for what it is.

Know what happens next? After a few of those lovely, quiet moments, the sensation of “not feeling up to it” disappears. And with it my stress and anxiety.

So the next time you’re not feeling up to it, take a moment to draw in a deep breath, hold it, and let it go. Then do it again, and again. And then again. Take time for you. You just might be pleasantly surprised, as I was, at how simple it can be to break through.

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