All Stressed Out and Nowhere to Go

The world is ruled by letting things take their course. It cannot be ruled by interfering.
Tao Te Ching

The stress of going nowhere? It’s true, not only do we stress when things are not going right, we stress when we think they are not going at all.

Many of the stressors in life seem to be related to the feeling of being trapped in a situation in which there seems no means of escape without Houdini-like skills. For many of us this will bring up images of work. Others may picture a relationship that they can’t work out, or an emotional pattern that seems entrenched. Whatever the apparent cause, the fuel for the stress is the perception of stuckness.

In a drastic attempt to jump start life, we may resort to emotional CPR maneuvers. These often backfire and only feed the stress monster. The move to a new job, relationship or living arrangement only brings on further worries and the only movement experienced is that of vertigo as life begins to spin out of control.

If we can withstand our own inactivity and resist the urge to do something during our stuck moments, we may discover the art of wu-wei (pronounced woo way). While often thought of as non-action, wu-wei is best described as non-forcing, or going with the flow. Even if this flow has slowed to a trickle. Wu-wei teaches us to resist the urge to force ourselves against the natural tides of life and instead ride the waves. This process was summed up to Pooh, in The Tao of Pooh, as “putting square pegs into square holes and round pegs into round holes.” A quick look at our stress shows how often we are at odds with this basic wisdom.

In the end, we are a raging rivers of activity—from the constant whirring of the mind machine, to the eternal dance performed by every cell in the body. Stressing out over being stuck is to be taken in by an illusion created by time and measuring our selves against this artificial benchmark. So the next time you find life grinding in neutral gear, ask yourself, “Where did I think I was going in the first place?” “Where do I need to be so badly?” Resist the urge to down that super-charged, triple caffeinated, stay-up-all-night, energy drink and take a nap. Don’t worry, the world isn’t going anywhere without you.