Plan to de-stress

Did you know that stress can be good? Typically, when we think of stress, we think of its negative effects. Stress is that heightened sense of alert when the body prepares for whatever is happening or coming. Without any stress at all, we'd be comatose. We wouldn't have the energy to make it through any tasks, much less through an entire day.

Perhaps you can recall times when you were to give a speech, make a presentation at work or perform in a recital. Your hands got sweaty, and you felt butterflies in your stomach—perhaps even a headache too. That's stress. And that's OK. Such signals help keep us on our toes and tell us that something important is about to happen. Unless we totally freak out at such things, that type of stress doesn't harm us, although it's still smart to find ways to calm yourself. 

However, what wears us down and can even cause health problems and damage to our immune systems is too much stress, acute stress or chronic stress. And that's such an individual thing. What pushes you over the edge may not do the same for me—and vice versa. So it's good to know your own limits and also to know your stress triggers. What's really good, too, is to know what works for you to de-stress. What calms you? Meditation? Prayer? A walk? Exercise? Quiet music? Journaling?

Just be sure you have a plan for de-stressing—a tool kit, as it were. It's not good for your body (or for your relationships or anything else either) to let your stress stay at an acute or chronic level.

P.S. This is just a heads-up for you about something that will reduce my stress level. Beginning in January 2017, I will be posting blogs three days a week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) rather than five days a week. If you have topics you would like to see addressed, I would love to hear from you at sonia@way2growcoaching.com.