The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry: How to stay emotionally healthy and spiritually alive in the chaos of the modern world

Comer continues his analysis of contemporary society’s fixation on speed, noting many of the deleterious effects of that obsession. From the 1950s onward, cultural analysts began to speak of the modern trend of hurry as a disease, one that could manifest in very real symptoms, such as an elevated risk of heart disease. Comer refers to it as “a form of violence on the soul” (47).

Comer notes how widespread and ordinary this disease of hurry is, manifested in common behaviors like the proclivity to search for the shortest line when waiting for a stoplight or a grocery store checkout, or the habitual attempt to multitask rather than to devote one’s attention to one task at a time. Even if these common behaviors might not be true of every reader, Comer notes that the disease of hurry can show up in an array of possible symptoms, of which he lists 10: irritability, hypersensitivity, restlessness, workaholism, emotional numbness, disordered priorities, lack of care for one’s body, escapism, failure to maintain spiritual disciplines, and isolation.

Due to the pervasive and overall toxic effects of these symptoms, Comer warns that the disease of hurry can ultimately kill all we hold dear: our relationships, our ability to feel joy and gratitude, and our pursuit of wisdom.