Are you a "Rushing Woman?"
Dr. Libby Weaver coined the term Rushing Woman’s Syndrome in her book of the same title to describe the modern, fast-paced woman – constantly moving, constantly doing, constantly feeling like there’s never enough time.
Once I started identifying the signs in my own life, I saw them everywhere!! In my patients, my friends, and even in strangers at the grocery store, we all seem to be in such a hurry!
When we aren’t feeling good, we often start on the newest diet, exercising more, or supplements, but this urgency is the silent force keeping so many of us stuck.
Who is the Rushing Woman?
She’s the one who…
🔹 Feels constantly overwhelmed
🔹 Thinks there’s never enough time in the day
🔹 Feels tired but wired
🔹 Can’t sit down without feeling guilty
🔹 Misses special moments because she’s too busy
🔹 Compromises sleep for productivity
🔹 Has a to-do list that is never completed
🔹 Rarely asks for help
Even if you don’t relate personally, you likely know a Rushing Woman. Maybe it’s your partner, sister, mother, or best friend. Maybe it’s the women in your office, your friend group, or in your own home.
This used to be me (and in all honesty, I can still end up there if I’m not careful). I lived in a constant state of urgency – always trying to keep up, to check off the next task, to be everything for everyone. I always felt behind. But our bodies aren’t designed to live in action mode 24/7. We weren’t meant to survive on stress hormones alone.
So what happens when we never slow down?
You may be thinking to yourself yeah, but how else would I get everything done? Isn’t this just how it is when I have a career, kids, spouse, and social life?
I didn’t know (or believe in) any other way either until I needed to. I couldn’t ignore the signals any longer.
When we ignore the need for rest, our bodies force us to pay attention. Hormonal imbalances, gut/digestive issues, debilitating fatigue, constant anxiety, tossing and turning – these symptoms aren’t random. They’re our body’s way of screaming, Enough!
As Dr. Weaver says in the introduction of her book: “The perceived need to rush, whether we show it on the outside or keep it under wraps, is changing women’s health in a detrimental way. Imbalanced hormones, depleted adrenal glands from long-term overproduction of stress hormones, sluggish thyroid glands, and the impact of all of this on our health, as well as the people around us, concerns me greatly.”
She talks about how, regardless of our circumstances, if we feel or perceive life to be challenging, this will have an impact on our health. What you perceive is then hormonally generated by your physiology!!!
We are seeing an epidemic now where women’s bodies cannot keep up with the rate of change the world asks of us. We cannot push on and on without rest. If we do, there will be consequences.
Some of the main consequences we see (and I deal with regularly in my practice) are:
Hormonal imbalances of all sorts (insulin, cortisol, thyroid, estrogen and progesterone), digestive issues, autoimmunity, excessive fatigue, anxiety/depression and the inability to thrive. It becomes all about survival. And being in a state of fight or flight causes our bodies to give out.
At that point, we’re forced to listen. This is when many women find me, seeking relief from a whole assortment of symptoms. If any of this resonates with you, I encourage you to pause – just for a moment. Take a deep breath. Let yourself exhale fully.
You don’t have to live in survival mode forever. It’s possible to achieve your goals without burning yourself out. I know because I’ve done it, and now I help hundreds of people follow a similar path.
Healing starts with awareness. And the first step is recognizing where you are—then giving yourself permission to create a new way forward. 💕
I am here to shed light on this epidemic and start to bring in healing. When the women in our world shift from rushing to thriving, the whole world can heal.
In health,
Dr. Emily