Sheretta, This sounds like a healthy approach. I like the way both activities are low impact and sustainable. At a guess, you'll be leaning on them for a long time.
Dr. Melissa Read
Richard, Yes, sometimes we have to change our approach altogether when managing stress. For some of us, changing our lifestyle is the best approach. This requires a large investment in making the shift, but it can be well worth the effort.
Dr. Melissa Read
Yaima, Exercise is a great way to reduce and manage stress. Sometimes it does not allow us to completely eliminate stress, but it can minimize the impact of stress and that can help.
Dr. Melissa Read
Shawnte, Interesting approach. I imagine that with the lights off, you are able to escape any potential visitors and additional requests. Nice thinking.
Dr. Melissa Read
I spend time alone in my office with the lights off to clear my mind.
i gonna try to practice more exercise, because if i i want to elinate the reason of my stress i ginna have to quit.
I HAVE LEARNED TO LISTEN TO MUSIC AND TAKING LONG WALKS AFTER WORK
It's important to have an outlet for stress, that coud be one of many things, runing,time out for just clearing the mind or favorite hobbie such as golf or taking a briskfull walk.
Focus less on the stressors and if this is not possible then do things that will be less stressful
Andrew, You make a great point! Having that diversity of coping mechanisms to draw from can be wonderful. What I especially like about it is that if one coping mechanism fails to work, you can turn to another. So if you typically run outside to cope with stress, and it's snowing, you can turn to an indoor activity instead.
Dr. Melissa Read
Debra, Yes, this would be a great exercise, particularly because you already successfully leverage lists. Go ahead and give it a try. You can start small, listing just a few stressors, and then work your way up.
Dr. Melissa Read
I am an avid list-maker but I've never considered making a "stress list". This is something I'll definately look into.
Ranee, Sounds like a great outlet. It's really important to give ourselves breaks, and treat ourselves to rewards throughout the day. Discovering those things we love and incorporating them into our routines can really help us get through the day.
Dr. Melissa Read
The main way that I cope with stress is to do something that I really like doing, even if it's just for a few minutes, like playing a game on the computer that I really like to play, what this does is takes my mind off of what is stressing me and helps me relax so that I can get refocused.
Some stressors just cannot be eliminated or reduced. They are just a fact of life. I find that calling my mom or my aunt on my way home from work each day so that both of us can discuss these stressors helps. I also try and take a few minutes to stretch each day, wether it be in my classroom or my cubicle. Just taking a few minutes to relieve some of the tension in my neck and shoulders helps me get through the rest of the day. When all else fails, I eat a banana in the afternoon and it is just the pick me up I need.
I was overwhelmed with the particular content in this module about "noise" at work being a stressor. I can so relate to that. As a matter of fact last weekend I had to work Saturday and Sunday (I usually work Monday thru Fri), by Sunday night I had the strangest feeling of just being so overwhelmed. I went for a long walk and litterally found a park area where I could lay down on the grass and just close my eyes and listen to "nothing". After 15 min I felt completely refreshed. It was amazing!
In coping with stress, exercise is one of the easiest ways of eliminating stress. Too often though life is hectic and finding time to exercise can be challenging. I have found that a combination of exercise, stretching, and yoga is a great balance to eliminate the stress in one's life as well as creating a healthy lifestyle to cope with our everyday challenges. Combinations of stess relief lifestlye changes, in my opinion, allows us to diversify our train of thougts which stops us from creating a standardization of our lives and increased stress levels.
Simply identifying the stressors takes some of the sting out of them. I enjoy laughing with my children and playing simple (quick) board games with them helps me focus on what is really important and takes the edge off the stress. I think that when we find the joy in one part of our life, it is easier to look for the positives in other parts...and stress looses its power. We just must be vigilant about our stress reduction plan.
I have always excercised which helps tremendously. However, there are times when I am over committed and put excercise aside, then my neck and arm get real stiff. The chiropractor spoke to me about taking deep breaths. The breaths are very helpful and makes me realize how much my muscles have tightened up. I think we all need to realize that we are just as important as all the committments we make in our lives. So at the top of our "stress lists," we should put "take care of ourselves," which means...excercise, drink water, get plenty of sleep, eat right, breath deep, don't over commit.
The stress in my life that I have no control over, I will look at it as a short term affect. I will not let it get the best of me, so to speak! Exercising, walking, reading and playing with my grandchildren takes a lot of stress off of me on the weekend.
