I used to fall into this trap all the time—and if I’m honest, I just did it again. It’s such an easy one to slip into. The belief that once life calms down, you’ll finally be able to focus on yourself. That once the deadline passes, the schedule clears, the trip ends, the kids go back to school, or the stress eases up, you’ll be ready to get back into your routines. Then, and only then, you’ll start prioritizing your health again. But here’s what I’ve learned—and what I’m still learning: life doesn’t slow down. It doesn’t hand you a clear calendar and invite you to finally take care of yourself. There will always be something—something urgent, something chaotic, something pulling at your attention. And if you keep waiting for the perfect window, you may wait forever.
The truth is, it’s not during the calm that your body needs care the most—it’s during the chaos. The busiest, most overwhelming seasons are not the time to abandon yourself. They’re the time to come home to yourself. Not because it’s easy, but because it’s necessary. Your nervous system doesn’t need more doing. It needs more support. And it especially needs that support when you feel like you don’t have time to give it. That’s when your system is the most taxed, the most dysregulated, and the most likely to keep you stuck in a cycle of burnout, exhaustion, inflammation, and symptoms that won’t let up.
I know how tempting it is to keep pushing. To tell yourself you’ll rest later. To believe that the next season will be different. But I also know how that story ends. You keep running on fumes. You ignore what your body is trying to say. You get further and further from yourself. And eventually, the symptoms get louder—not because you’re broken, but because your body has run out of ways to ask you to pay attention.
No one is going to do this for you. No one is going to create the space. No one is going to clear your schedule, reset your habits, or make your health a priority. That’s your job. And it starts with a single choice. Not a perfect plan. Not a 30-day protocol. Just a decision to stop waiting and start acting like your well-being matters. Because it does. Not just for you, but for everyone around you. When your body is regulated, your relationships change. Your work changes. Your ability to give, to lead, to connect—all of it changes. But it can’t happen when you’re stuck in survival mode, constantly promising you’ll take care of yourself “when things slow down.”
What if they don’t? What if the thing that needs to change isn’t the pace of your life—but the way you show up in the middle of it? What if the answer isn’t waiting for stillness—but creating it, even in the mess?
This isn’t about adding more to your plate. It’s about subtracting what no longer belongs. It’s about giving yourself permission to pause. To say no. To take a breath. To do the small, quiet things that remind your system that you matter—not just when it’s convenient, but especially when it’s not.
Because without your health, nothing else really works. You can’t show up for your family, your work, your community, or your purpose if your body is breaking down. You can’t lead when you’re burned out. You can’t give when you’re empty. And you can’t feel like yourself when you’re constantly putting your needs last.
So stop waiting for life to slow down. It won’t. But you can decide what you prioritize. You can choose to stop abandoning yourself. You can choose to stop making self-care something you earn, and start making it something you live. Not someday. Today.
