On Tax Day, a Gentle Reminder for Your Nervous System
There was an old vintage poster hanging in the bathroom of my childhood beach house that has stuck with me for years. It wasn't a Shakespeare quote or one of the eight wonders of the world - oh no. It was a picture of a dog chasing its own tail with the phrase:
“The hurrier I go, the behinder I get.”
If that doesn't perfectly capture modern life, I don't know what does. This saying has also often been associated with The White Rabbit from “Alice's Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll, which makes sense given his reputation for frantic urgency and chronic lateness.
So many of us move through our days feeling like we're constantly behind. Between overflowing inboxes, endless to-do lists, and today's tax deadline, that phrase feels especially relevant.
Emails to answer.
Laundry to fold.
Appointments to make.
Meals to plan.
Taxes to file.
People to call back.
A hundred tiny responsibilities pulling at our attention all at once.
And today, on Tax Day, that feeling can become even more amplified.
For many people, taxes are one of those unavoidable stressors in life; something that has to get done whether we feel ready for it or not. The deadline itself can create a sense of urgency that spills into everything else.
But here's the truth:
Life will always contain tasks.
There will always be something (or 100 things!) that needs your attention.
The to-do list is not going to magically disappear.
What can change is the way your body and mind move through it.
WHY HURRY HURTS THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
Living in a constant state of hurry signals to the body that something is wrong.
Even when the “threat” is simply a full inbox or a looming deadline, your nervous system may respond as if you're under danger.
This can activate the sympathetic nervous system - your fight-or-flight response - which in turn increases your stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. Over time, chronic stress can contribute to anxiety, sleep disruption, fatigue, muscle tension, headaches, and difficulty concentrating.
When we rush through life, our bodies rarely get the signal that it is safe to rest. The result? We may move faster, but often feel less effective, less present, and more exhausted. Ironically, the more hurried we become, the more “behind” we often feel.
HOW HURRY AFFECTS THE 8 AREAS OF HEALTH
Stress doesn't stay in one lane.
When we're constantly rushing, whether it's trying to meet deadlines, juggle responsibilities, or tackle unavoidable tasks like taxes, it tends to spill over into every area of our well-being.
Here are a few everyday ways that hurry can show up across the 8 areas of health:
Physical health: tight shoulders, jaw clenching, shallow breathing, headaches, poor sleep, or skipping meals while rushing to finish your tax return
Mental health: racing thoughts, overwhelm, anxiety, difficulty concentrating on even simple tasks, and negative self-talk flooding your mind
Intellectual health: making mistakes because you're moving too quickly, rereading the same form multiple times, or forgetting details
Social health: feeling short-tempered with loved ones, withdrawing, or being distracted during time with others because your mind is still on your to-do list
Emotional health: irritability, frustration, guilt, or feeling emotionally exhausted by the constant pressure to keep up
Financial health: procrastinating financial tasks like taxes, avoiding opening bills, or making rushed money decisions from a place of stress
Spiritual health: losing touch with gratitude, purpose, and presence because life feels like an endless series of tasks
Environmental health: cluttered counters, unopened mail, piles of paperwork, and chaotic spaces that mirror internal overwhelm
When we slow down, we give each of these areas a chance to breathe. This is the same whole-person framework we use inside my Signature program to identify the root causes of imbalance and create sustainable support plans.
A GENTLE REFRAME
Instead of asking:
“How do I get everything done faster?”
Try asking:
“How do I move through this in a way that feels sustainable and calming?”
Because life is, in many ways, a series of endless tasks.
That's not pessimistic, it's simply reality.
Bills will arrive in the mail.
Taxes will be due.
Laundry will reappear.
The dishes will somehow always fill the sink.
Since these responsibilities aren't going away anytime soon, learning how to meet them without chronic urgency is one of the kindest things we can do for our mental health.
10 TIPS TO SLOW DOWN AND PROTECT YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM
Do one thing at a time: Multitasking often increases stress and reduces focus.
Build margins into your day: Leave space between appointments and tasks. Remember you can't teleport from one place to another, so build time in your schedule to commute without the need to rush and get stressed by traffic.
Start earlier than you think you need to: Especially for stressful tasks like taxes or paperwork. The IRS filing deadline is today, April 15, for most individuals, which is exactly why planning ahead matters.
Pause before transitioning tasks: Take three deep breaths before moving to the next thing.
Stop glorifying busyness and hustle culture: Productivity is not the same as worth.
Break large tasks into smaller steps: “File taxes” becomes: gather forms, review deductions, pay, submit. If you're a visual person, write a to-do list with each step, so you can tick them off as you go, which will help you feel more productive and at ease.
Create calming rituals around stressful tasks: Tea, music, a candle, a tidy workspace.
Notice your body's hurry cues: Tight jaw, shallow breathing, racing thoughts.
Practice saying, “This can wait.” Not everything is urgent. When something comes up, take 2-5 minutes to evaluate the true urgency of the task and assign it a realistic due date.
Remember that done calmly is still done: Slow progress is still progress.
Sometimes the healthiest thing we can do is stop chasing our own tail. So the next time you feel a sense of urgency flooding your body, remember these simple steps:
Slow down.
Breathe.
Gently remind yourself that the work will still get done.
Then create a plan, guided by calm rather than chaos. Your nervous system will thank you for it.
Warmly,
Tamara