By Tanya Yoder

Does it ever feel like you’re running out of time? Do you hear that tick, tick, tick echoing in your ears,  orbiting your mind? Has it gotten so loud that you can’t hear anything else? None of your other thoughts are allowed to exist – there isn’t space. Everything is scattered. Where did all the time go? 

Why is a lack of time often the biggest worry we face? Of course, in some cases, this worry is valid. But what about the times you’re waking up to your alarm and hating that you have to try to survive the day, even though you don’t know yet what it holds? Then there are those days where you decide it’s just not worth it. It’s not worth getting out of bed for whatever it is you need to get out of bed for, and it’s useless trying to make yourself feel better. Those are almost the worst ones, aren’t they?

If you allow these thoughts to live in your head, you’ll be stuck in a loop. Try and find one reason to break it. Do you have a loved one? A pet? Maybe you should get out of bed because the feeling of being outside, the warm sun on your once sun-kissed face, will be worth it? Maybe you should get out of bed because your plants are slowly dying in the corner, or for that pile of clothes that you never got around to washing, or maybe even for an overdue library book?

It’s easy to find things to stay in the loop for. But it’s so much more beautiful when you have something worth getting up for: something, someone, who is worth much more than you think.

Who is that someone? It’s you.

Why is it hard to put yourself before others? Refusing to put yourself first is just how some peoples’ brains work, and I do think it’s one of the hardest decisions to make for yourself if you are one of these people. Some people you encounter in your life will make you feel so selfish for choosing yourself for once. But why listen to them? Why give them the time of day? 

If someone makes you feel bad, why put yourself through the misery of being around them? They’ve been in my life for so long. There might still be a chance for them to change. I still care about them. All of these are simply excuses. Life is full of changes. People come and go. Some people are a ‘go’ person. The only person who can make the decision for you to change is yourself, and the only person who can make the decision for them to change is themselves. You can still care about someone and not want them in your life.

The thoughts that ride on a merry-go-round in your head aren’t always pretty. In fact, the ones that stubbornly stick around are often the opposite of pretty. It’s up to you to take them and turn them into something beautiful.

When you’ve come out of that loop I spoke of before, it feels great. Sometimes, more than just a bit of time is needed to make this escape, and that’s okay. But when that loop is in the past, don’t go back to it by thinking, I’ve wasted so much time. I need to get things done. I can’t take any breaks. From these thoughts starts a new loop.

It’s important to let yourself live. Thrive, not just survive, right?

Do something. Allow yourself to live in the moment.