My "Snoopy" is "Theo" and he is one of my go-to’s for self-care.
Whenever I find myself getting way too stressed out, well...this furry-four-legged-family member just seems to make me chuckle to remind me to get back to calm for what matters most.
Truth is, while the human body is designed to experience stress to keep us alert, motivated, and ready to avoid danger (I mean 'real' danger), all too often, many of us are over stressed. And when we are over stressed, we become anxious, we worry and often, it causes distress leading to body and mental ailments. In fact, many of us know and studies show, that stress is linked to 6 of the leading causes of death: heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, accidents, cirrhosis of the liver, and suicide. It also causes chronic health issues such as autoimmune conditions – take it from someone like me who’s had to manage through SLE Lupus, and Sjogrens.
Too much stress wears down the body's natural defenses, leading to a variety of physical symptoms, including:
- Dizziness or a general feeling of "being out of it."
- General aches and pains.
- Headaches.
- Indigestion or acid reflux symptoms.
- Increase in or loss of appetite.
- Muscle tension in neck, face or shoulders.
- Problems sleeping.
- Racing heart.
- Fatigue, malaise, tiredness, exhaustion.
- Weight gain or loss.
- Recurring upset stomach/digestive issues.
- Hives and rashes.
- Chronic anger, depression, apathy.
- Addictive behaviour (e.g., overwork, substance use, compulsive behaviour/worry/anxiety).
The good news is, we can learn to manage stress and lead healthier lives, ready for inevitable change and challenges in life.
Here are some tips to begin with, to reduce your stress level:
- Keep a positive attitude, and practice gratitude regularly.
- Accept that there are events that you cannot control.
- Be assertive instead of aggressive. Understand your feelings and what they’re telling you for opinions, or beliefs instead of being reactive, holding on to anger, being defensive, or passive, and then regretting it.
- Learn and practice deep relaxation techniques.
- Exercise regularly. Your body can handle stress so better when healthy and ‘fit’.
- Eat healthy, well-balanced meals and for goodness sake, hydrate.
- Take a look at your schedule and see what keeps you busy and if it really needs to.
- Know and set limits appropriately, learning to say no to requests that would create excessive and useless stress in your life.
- Make time for family, friends, hobbies and interests.
- Get enough rest and sleep. Your body needs time to recover from stressful events.
- Don't rely on alcohol, drugs, or compulsive behaviors to reduce stress – there are alternate options much healthier for you.
- Seek out social support. Spend enough time with those you love and can support you on a personal level (phone or virtual time works too!).
- Seek support of a mental health professional trained in stress management, self care, or biofeedback techniques to learn more healthy ways of dealing with the stress in your life.
What's your strategy for calm and taming stress? Comment below with your thoughts and comments. Check us out at https://factorof.com/ and feel free to complete a self-assessment or at https://factorof.com/page/contact-apply to book a time for a free consultation.
Here's to your health, to our health, always!