STRESS MANAGEMENT: ARE YOU STRESSED?

May 28, 2019

Pittsburgh Fitness Project

Are you stressed and need to work on stress management? Just about everyone seems to be stressed these days. If you can’t tell, read this article to see if your stress might be affecting your overall health. If you are a person who struggles with stress and find it to be inhibiting your life at all, then you need to start taking action to remove stressors from your life as much as possible. Know that although stress creeps often unknowingly into your life, it will not necessarily go away on its own. We often have to take deliberate actions and shift our mindset in order to start to make stress go away.

FIRST: FOCUS ON SCALING DOWN

Just to get your head clear, eliminate all excess activities or at least the next 2 months (change is slow). If need be and if finances allow, arrange for a weekend getaway to get away from your routine and gain a fresh outlook. Make sure to write notes about what you notice during this time.

SECOND: CHECK YOUR MINDSET

Fair warning – this is a lot easier said than done! This is related to item #4 below but needs to be done right after you have made space in your schedule. Once this has happened, you can begin to look at the activities in your life and see which are stressing you out and which need to stay. From there, be honest with yourself about where in your life your mindset (negative thoughts, unrealistic expectations, etc.) might be hindering you. Once these are identified, just note them for now. The first step is becoming aware of where stress is coming from, dealing with it will come later.

THIRD: START TO REPLACE UNHEALTHY HABITS

Exercise, start prioritizing sleep, add in breathing/meditation exercises daily, sunshine or vitamin D supplements, talk to a doctor about other supplements (CBD, ashwagandha, l-theanine, GABBA, to name a few) that may support you in this season. Make sure the food you put into your body is nourishing and not contributing to your stressed out state.

FOURTH: REFLECT AND TAKE ACTION

Do you need to make any major life changes? Is your stress beyond the point of simply cutting down on activities? Maybe you need to make a job change, move cities, make new friends, shift your friend circle, or make other big life changes. Maybe, though, you don’t. There is no “correct” path for this process and the reflections will come out differently for each person.

This is also the stage where you will deal with any items brought up in step #2. If you are stuck in a mindset that is contributing to stress, then work on this through journaling, meditation, diving deeper into your community, reading an inspirational book, etc. A lot of people find it helpful to work with a therapist or a coach, or even meet with a friend or mentor to get an unbiased perspective on this.

Either way, make sure you note and celebrate the progress you have made so far.

FIFTH: REPEAT THIS ENTIRE PROCESS AS NECESSARY

Know that it is never possible to completely eliminate stress, but over time and with consistent effort, we can minimize it and learn how to better cope with it. Stress tends to linger longer than the actual circumstances that caused it in the first place, so be patient with yourself!

Do not be afraid to ask for help from your community, loved ones, a therapist, or coach!

Emily Eichner: PFP Holistic Lifestyle Coach