April is STRESS AWARENESS MONTH (established in 1997 by Dr. Morton C. Orman, MD) and I’m going to help all of us get a handle on this issue!!! The goals of STRESS AWARENESS MONTH are to inform people about the dangers of stress and to teach us coping measures.
According to the website, HELPGUIDE.ORG, a site dedicated to supplying expert, ad-free resources to help resolve health issues, there are SIX Stress Management Strategies:
- Avoid stress: learn to say “NO” to time-consuming issues/activities you don’t really want to do and avoid people who stress you out.
- Alter the situation: express how you really feel instead of holding it in, COMPROMISE, and manage your time better.
- Adapt to the stressor: if you can’t change the situation, look at the BIG PICTURE! You might have to adjust your standards, as in don’t demand perfection. And always focus on the positive.
- Accept what you can’t change: some things are beyond our control so we need to accept them and deal with them accordingly. Look for personal growth re: the issue and also learn to forgive!!!
- Take time for fun/relaxation EVERYDAY=a must! It might be as simple as taking 30 minutes to read a magazine or book OR call/meet up with a friend you haven’t talked to in ages. Look to do things DAILY that bring you joy and do keep a sense of homor!
- Adopt a healthy lifestyle: exercise regularly, eat more healthy, reduce your sugar and caffeine intake, avoid alcohol, smoking & drugs, and GET A MINIMUM OF 7 HOURS OF SLEEP NIGHTLY! Sleep lets our bodies relax and it helps refuel our minds and bodies. If we are tired we can not always think intelligently so that can add to stress–RIGHT?!!!
See, we have more control over our lives than we thought! We’ve found simple things we can do on a daily basis to help us lead less stressful lives. Try doing ONE THING to help you be more incontrol of your life today and see if it makes you feel better. Then little by little try making other positive changes and see if you can say GOOD BYE to your old ways of dealing with stress!!!!
