Sweet One,
Stress is a part of life.
No matter how in tune we might be with our bodies and making healthy choices, sooner or later stress hits, right?
All of a sudden your to-do list explodes (with no end in sight), the deadlines jumble together, you get sick, you become the bottleneck and you start to feel it: stress has arrived.
For me, I feel it in my back.
It feels like I have a tightly wound slab of marble on my back. I feel the tension rising through the back of my neck up to my head, my lower back gets stiff and my brain starts shutting down.
The truth is that life does get stressful.
Stress is exhausting and wreaks havoc on our health.
In fact, 90% of all chronic disease is attributed in some shape or form to stress (eek!).
I’m writing you about this topic because I’ve been experiencing it more than usual the last couple of weeks.
I am right in the middle of a major re-branding campaign. It’s exciting, it’s scary and there are MANY moving parts.
I’m also teaching a group class, I have individual clients, I’m sponsoring an event in NYC (check it out here) and more.
The pressure is ON! Even good news can be stressful.
So, this weekend when my stress level got too high, I had a little 1-on-1 chat with myself that brought me back to my senses.
Here’s the question I ask myself when I feel I am going down a winding rabbit hole:
“Will I choose to love myself through this process or hurt myself through this process?”
The truth is that no matter what you are going through, your choices will either support you or harm you…and we’ll getthe work done one way or another.
I invite you to choose love. It’s like giving your body a vacation without going on an actual one!
Examples of what the loving choice may look like:
- Scheduling a massage to decompress
- Clearing your calendar for the afternoon/evening so you can get your bearings and reconnect to your body
- Go for a walk to clear your head and take a break
- Ask for an extension on a deadline or ask to reschedule
- Ask for a rain check or say no to something if you believe you won’t do it well
- Get extra sleep and start winding down without technology in your bedroom
- Go out with your friends, go dancing. Fun is KEY.
- Take a few minutes during the day to connect to your body either through movement, meditation or rest.
Remember to celebrate your victories. As women, we often don’t realize how much we get DONE in a week.
As a result, we beat ourselves up for what we haven’t done instead of for what we HAVE DONE.
Celebrations allow the brain to really take in the goodness of what we’ve done (positive reinforcement).
Celebrating also allows us to feel GOOD about ourselves, and in turn, tells the Universe that we are ready to receive even MORE goodness.
Food also plays a role in how we feel. While it may seem more challenging when you’re stressed, when you choose whole foods like whole grains, lean proteins, salads, fruits, vegetables and nuts, you will feel better.
Sugar, processed foods, coffee and fast food will likely make you feel more stressed. Just be mindful of what you’re feeling in the moment and ask yourself:
What does my body really need in this moment?
Then stop for a moment and listen.
While we cannot stop stress from happening in our lives, the key to managing our stress starts with awareness of how we’re feeling and then making a choice to control how we feel moment to moment.
Tonight I’m heading out for an extra massage. Why? My body really needs it and I want to honour it for all that it’s done for me.
So here are my words of wisdom for this week
When life gets stressful, double your self-care. That’s when your body needs it the most via @sweetpathgirl. {tweet it}
Now go out and enjoy this lovely spring weather we’re having.
To your sweet and relaxing success,
