In the Flow with Healing Waters

Have you ever noticed that when you get stressed out, your imagination can run wild and you’re creating outcomes in your head to a situation? Most often, our imaginary outcome is not desirable, and that causes additional stress!! Let’s break down stress and read about some tips that may help. 

First, there is an event that can cause an immediate stress response, or a series of situations that can create stress to creep in slowly, and build.

Second, there is the recognition that you’re stressed and how you are  feeling it in your body. Perhaps you shrug at your shoulders and hold tension in your neck; maybe you clench your teeth or grind your teeth at night while you’re sleeping (yes, you can worry while you’re sleeping). Do you get stomach aches? Do you have trouble sleeping? Does your breath quicken? Do you feel your heart beating faster? These are just a few symptoms of how stress can present in your body. If you accept this as a way of life and stay stressed for extended periods of time, the long term effects can be harmful to you, and may result in things such as heart disease, depression, anxiety and high blood pressure, to name a few. 

   

EVERY DAY BRINGS A CHOICE: TO PRACTICE STRESS OR PRACTICE PEACE.

Joan Borysenko

                                                                                                                       

The third step is identifying the trigger. Perhaps your stressor is the thought of doing something unfamiliar like applying for a new job, taking a test, lack of money, a deadline at work, family issues, or wanting to have control of a situation and you don’t. Identifying the trigger will assist you in reducing the stress and moving through it. Once you’ve identified the trigger, understanding what can be done to reduce the stress is helpful. 

Here are some suggestions:

1. Journal your stress. Write down when it started and how you’re feeling. Now, write down your desired outcome, not the outcome you’ve made up in your head.  
2. Knowledge is power. Ask questions to get clarity about the situation. 
3. Ask for support. 
4. Communicate with the person who is stressing you out. 
5. Meditate
6. Breathe deeply and relax
7. Exercise

There are many ways to relieve stress. Find what fits you, make a decision to improve your well being and shorten the time that you are stressed. We can’t avoid stress all together, but we can control how long we live in it. 

Managing stress in the flow

Deb Peltier