STRESS

 STRESS

"Stress is an ignorant state. It believes that everything is an emergency. Nothing is that important."  

Natalie Goldberg

This is exactly how our brain is wired. I know that it is time for me to have a one on one conversation with myself to take back control. My brain is just like everyone else's brain. It is there to steer me from danger and that sometimes means to give in to the worries. A good question that I ask myself is will it help and change things if I worry. The answer is always a loud NO! There must be action. Take a thinking moment to reflect on the stress that is bothering me then focus on what would be the appropriate way to solve the problem.

First, I tried a little test in a magazine that had questions to ask myself and based on my answers it determined that I did not try to avoid my worries, nor did I get stuck in a rut mode with my worries and best of all, I was not someone who put every worry into a catastrophic state. I was quite happy that I ended up as a wise worrier. This simply stated told me that I was on the right track by dealing with issues as they popped up while keeping them in perspective. 

We all have a lot on our plates. This pandemic doubled up on all the stress that we have ever known before. Even making a list of how I was going to de-stress seemed to be overwhelming at times. It really is a matter of self-care. There will always be stressors to deal with so changing my habits of dealing with stress seemed to be the healthy way to go. Even Dr. Fauci needed a reminder from his wife to slow down and take care of his health. Think of what all he deals with in his job. And he is a healthy 80 year old because he does what he knows is good for his body. 

Stress hormones are not healthy for our bodies, yet stress is all around us. Too much is way too depressing and dangerous for all of us. The best thing that I have discovered and actually read an article that Dr. Fauci wrote is to let what you can just go; like in the Disney movie.

There are many ways to do this. Gaining power over stress is one of the healthiest things you can do.

It is so important (and yet I still MUST remind myself) to relax more, exercise more and get enough sleep. These things help to make our immune system stronger. I have a physical therapist who has shown me the types of exercises that are right for me. If I skip a session, my body can tell it. Same thing with sleep. I know when I have not had enough. My body feels it and reacts and those are days that a power nap is in order. Even when I have had enough sleep, I find it is a good idea for me to take a relaxation period on the sofa and just close my eyes a bit, cuddle up with one or both doodles, listen to some smooth jazz, read a book, paint or write. Something that is just for me. I am most definitely better for that. I can hear the song by Bobby McFerrin:

It has been proven in studies that sleep makes us smarter, better looking, more creative and can add years to our lives. 

Of course, we all know there are major crisis events that fall into our laps and we must deal with them. I believe for me that remembering being defeated is optional when it comes to allowing worries and challenges to defeat me. It is a matter of being strong and taking care of myself. Also, allowing others that help to support me...being aware that they are only trying to help me not to be defeated when things seem to go topsy-turvey. I must open my ears to listen to them.

We are in this together!