Stress can manifest in many forms. In fact, even things we view as positive, such as getting a promotion or getting married, may increase stress. What’s notable about stress is that as events pile up, their effect on you as a whole is greater than the sum of their parts.
Studies show that too much stress can profoundly affect your health and wellness: high blood pressure, difficulty sleeping, migraines, lack of energy, depression, lowered immunity, short fuse, heart disease and general malaise to name several. Work productivity and relationships may suffer, and one’s capacity for joy can be reduced. Many of us take stress management for granted, but it should be cornerstone to our overall health and wellness plan.
Not uncommon to someone in the health field, I’ve been guilty this past year of taking my capacity to deal with stress for granted. A new job, the illness and subsequent death of a very close friend, and various family issues all came to a head near the same time frame. Like most healthy, young-ish types, I assumed I was fine and that the sleeplessness, irritability, vertigo and moments of anxiety I was newly experiencing were peri-menopausal, or certainly related to some physical cause. In a way, they were. It’s been a very powerful lesson for me of the depth of the mind-body connection. A year’s long photo analysis would undoubtedly reveal an age progression three times that long.
My good friend, Dan Metevier, PsyD, was right on when he described my symptoms as though my gas pedal is stuck, fight or flight even when there’s nothing to fight or to flee. So, since life keeps happening despite my supplications for it to slow down, for the first time I’ve had to pay attention to my stress and incorporate concentrated efforts toward dealing with it. Deep breathing is one of them, which I’d always considered hokey, until Dan explained that there is a physiological response to deep breathing which acts to ‘trick’ the parasympathetic system (the system that slows your fight or flight response) into kicking in.
Additionally, exercise, eating right and getting enough rest are critical. I’ve learned to be smart with my energy reserves, particularly on the weekends, building in down time. The elimination of my 30-minute car ride to work left me without that private therapy time which I’d used to clear my head and so now I take time EVERY day to center myself with reading, prayer and meditation (that doesn’t come easy but I am trying).
My good friend Tracy also reminded me that ‘girls like us’ (type-A, single, do it yourself-ers) have to know it’s OK to ring the bell. By that she means picking up the phone, calling in the troops when necessary. I don’t know exactly why that’s so hard, but I’m sure I’m not alone in that. Maybe it’s a pride thing, but there’s a lot of help out there if we’re willing to wave the white flag, and so I’m grateful to have a handful of great friends, minutemen of sorts, who round out the tools I’ve been using to raise my listing ship.
Try this on-line tool to measure your current stress: Click here
Contact: franscottfitness@hotmail.com