while watching the conversation with amanda de cadenet on lifetime this weekend, i started to think about stress. actually, that's a lie - i've been thinking about stress for quite awhile now. in fact my parents have been telling me over and over again that i need to learn how to manage it. but honestly it wasn't until i heard christina applegate discussing it on the conversation that i started to take it a bit more seriously.
christina spoke about a time in her life that was very stressful and involved a lot of loss. this was followed by a diagnosis of breast cancer. she said that she fully believes that stress breeds sickness and that she needed to learn to adapt a more relaxed attitude.
well, in my case, sickness breeds stress which breeds more sickness. sounds like a bit of a tricky cycle to me! last time i was at the medical clinic, i grabbed some of those little pamphlets on managing stress. they were far more general than i had hoped for... with a distinct lack of actual solutions. i'm not sure what i was looking for - but i could really use some tips on letting loose 'in the moment.' you know, that moment where your mind is running a mile a minute and you start to feel a bit crazed. and you wish you had some kind of little angel on your shoulder who suddenly appeared and said helpful things like "don't sweat it honey!," "sloooow down," and "does this Really matter??"
do you ladies have an advice on the subject? how do you teach yourself to relax? what steps do you take to create a stress free life for yourself?
Last weekend, some dear friends sat us down to watch the documentary "Happy". I know it sounds a bit hippy-dippy but there are proven ways to cultivate a happier existence so that stress doesn't play such a major role.
ReplyDeleteOne of the keys was to take the focus off yourself ( a tough one for me! ) and do things for others. The more you focus on helping others and being around people/things/places that bring you joy, the happier you will be.
I'm not doing the message of the documentary justice at all. Check it out-- I think you'll like it and find it helpful.
http://www.thehappymovie.com/
it's true - doing good things for others (even if that's just saying thank you to the bus driver, giving a stranger a compliment on the street, or little notes in books) helps you feel good about you and the world as a whole. if you can be nice to people for no real reason, they can be nice to you too. that momentary "feel good moment" helps release tension in you. or at least alleviates it.
ReplyDeleteotherwise i recommend wine. lots of it.
i also think a general adaptiveness to change (i.e. letting your "plan" shift) can be useful.
also, again, wine.